Black Boots
by Smiling Ivan
Summary: Signum must work along side a Private Military Contractor to discover how weapons, still under development, are making it into the hands of dangerous individuals.
1. Chapter 1

**Black Boots**

Dedicated to William Rose

"_Old soldiers don't die, they just get posted out._"

* * *

A vast and empty city stretched out into the horizon filled by a transient October wind. The buildings silently decaying into oblivion as the potted and broken highways periodically shed loose rubble from their outer edges. The mid day sun hung high burning out all the shadows, save the ones taking refuge within the derelict structures. Among the forest of roof tops sat a man with grey speckled, dark crimson hair by the name of Garand. He watched the scenery while humming Along the Watch Tower, a well known Jimi Hendrix song. A salty breeze brushed against his face rustling his Multi-cam uniform, an invisible indication the sea that was not far off yet out of his line of sight. The dead city was a sight that soothed the man. He found a beauty in the silent decay, more so here than other similar places he had been. Chechnya, Rwanda, Iraq, Afghanistan he had been too many places in many countries with cities and towns like this one. However he felt this city was far superior to the others. There was a deep silence here that could not be found anywhere else. The man felt an over whelming feeling of contentment watching the sky line of this once great forest of concrete as it steadily marched towards its end. He absently ran his thumb across the right side of his face, tracing a scar that stretched from the corner of his mouth across his cheek to where a section of his ear lobe had been severed.

The ear bud of his radio clicked as a transmission came in, "Charlie One, Tango One," The cheery and high pitched female voice pulled him away from his humming mid song.

He keyed his throat mike, "Charlie One, Send," Garand answered.

"Sierra, I say again Sierra."

It was the signal to begin. No more time to loaf around there was work to be done. He had not come to Mid-Childia simply to enjoy the scenery, he had a tasking to perform. Garand placed his bush cap with the up turned sides on his head, followed by his clear ballistic goggles and olive drab lower face wrap. Standing up he made a quick 360 degree check around him and spotted a glint off in the distance to the east. Pulling back on the charging handle of his 7.62 XCR assault rifle, he casually stepped off the edge of the building and resumed humming. As he plummeted towards the pavement, he snapped his right hand onto the grip of his side arm. A custom made olive drab and black 1911 pistol. With it he fired 3 rounds towards the ground directly below him. Beneath his feet a stack of three green magic circles appeared, floating in midair. As he fell the man passed through each circle. Every time he contacted one he decelerated. When his boots finally hit the ground he allowed his legs to absorb the shock, rolling in order to spread the impact of the sudden stop across his body without causing injury. Quickly rising to his feet, he sprinted across the street into an ally. Hanging a right then a left, he dashed out into the next street over, across the road and into a building. Leaning close to a pillar near a large hole in the structures front face, he watched the street.

Shouldering his weapon, he peered through the four times scope. The glint he had seen earlier was larger and seemed to have some idea where he was. The glint quickly became a silhouette of a person flying through the air at an amazing speed. The instant the person's figure spanned the distance from the top to the bottom of the rifle sight he released a 6 round burst. The figure seemed to lose its balance as the rounds struck it, causing it tumbled out of the air colliding with a pile of rubble resting in the street. Garand had no intention of confirming the kill, he knew better than that, at best his target was a little dazed. He had to move quickly to a new position. Dashing through the building he exited the back into a large open parking lot. This was disadvantageous, but he had no choice he had to make it to the next building or he would be in dire straits. He started running for the building to his right. It was small but it was the closest and just behind it was an alley way.

The wall behind him suddenly exploded, large chunks of concrete nearly hitting him. There was no need to look back he knew it was the same attacker from before. As he sprinted across the parking lot he pulled out a smoke grenade. After a quick pull of the pin he dropped it behind him. Instantly a small magic seal on the top of the device glowed and a massive cloud of grey smoke filled the parking lot. Using the smoke as cover, Garand altered his plan and ran to the far building on the opposite side hoping that his assailant would assume he would continue on the shorter route to cover.

Once inside the opposite building he sprinted up several floors. Reaching one of the upper most levels, he waited for the smoke outside to clear. Hidden from view he grinned, he was very much enjoying this skirmish. With a chuckle he peaked up over the window sill. The smoke had cleared and there was no sign of his pursuer. It would seem his ploy worked but there was no room for errors or assumptions. He would have to move again. Now that Garand had lost his pursuer it was his turn to hunt them down.

There was a sudden blast of light from the opposite side of the floor. All at once the windows along with the wall they were mounted in disappeared in a shower of debris. Despite the bright flash Garand could still make out his opponent he fired several bursts of full auto as the figure ducked and dodged. His opponent suddenly rushed towards him. Quickly, he scurried into the hall like some startled animal to avoid the incoming attack. Running past two open door ways he ducked into the third and hid lying on his back behind a low rubble pile as he changed his magazine. Footsteps began to carefully approach and search each room. When the sounds stopped at his room he calmly ceased breathing and lied as still as a corpse, listening ready to react but hoping that they would not make a thorough check of the room. The footsteps moved on.

The instant they did Garand broke cover then emptied a full magazine into the wall, the other side of which was the hall his assailant was using. He bolted back out of the room running to the opposite end of the corridor while swapping another magazine into his weapon. Nearing the end of the corridor he pulled out his 1911. Leaping out the large hole in the wall at the far end, he fired his side arm. Using four shots he created a bridge of magic circles to the next building. As he jumped from circle to circle each would disappear as he made it onto the next. Inside the next building he whipped himself around and aimed his weapon at the hole he had just escaped through. Watching carefully he saw a flash a movement. His assailant quickly emerged again and flew towards him. He let lose burst after burst of fire but each was dodged, or blocked by a magic shield. In moments the fast moving figure was on top of him. It swung its weapon at him and struck him squarely in the chest. Garand was thrown across the room and slammed into a wall. Ignoring the pain from the sudden strike he got to his feet and reciprocated with a long burst of fire from his weapon.

As he put rounds down range, Garand took a quick survey the floor of this new building. It was open but filled with a large amount of derby from the floor above that seemed to have collapsed. This was the best he could hope for the area was too closed in for his enemy to swing their weapon properly and with all the cover available he had plenty of good firing positions. However, he needed one additional thing in his favour. He took out his last smoke grenade and pulled the pin drooping it at his feet. As the smoke filled the confined space he loaded a new magazine. Tapping the side of his goggles his field of vision was changed to a grey scale that eliminated the smoke from his line of sight. He could now easily see his opponent. Firing a burst at the silhouette it quickly ducked for cover. The two combatants ducked and dogged, moving from cover to cover attacking and guarding. With each attack the excitement in Garand grew he was enjoying the fight more and more. He could not get enough of it, he was so intoxicated with adrenaline that he could be declared legal impaired. It was fights like this that he lived and breathed for, the intensity the ferocity. The whole building could collapse on them and he'd still keep fighting.

"Fuck'en eh this is great!" He called out as he loaded his last magazine. The top of the pillar he was using as cover suddenly disappeared as it was sliced in half. A quick combat role and he emptied his magazine into the figure before it scurried away again. Letting go of his rifle, Garand took up his 1911. He quickly slammed a fresh magazine in to it. Pistol at the ready he started scanning the area with its barrel. A flash of motion in the corner of his eye drew his attention. He swung his weapon towards it but it was already gone. The smoke was starting to clear. Soon he would lose his advantage he needed to end the fight swiftly, despite part of him wanting it to continue.

Another blur of movement this time he caught it in time to fire two rounds though both missed. Garand chased after the figure. Once it was in full view again he double tapped his trigger. The two rounds flew strait for the centre of mass but were blocked by a magic shield. Not missing a beat the assailant rushed him. Garand fired again and again as it drew closer. His enemy drew back its long weapon, looking to end this fight with a single swing.

"Come on!" Garand barked. Lowering his stance, he pulled a trench knife from the small of his back. The figure swung down at him with full force knocking him to the ground. He managed to block the strike with his knife while pushing his 1911 into his opponents' sternum. "I win," he smiled. As the smoke cleared he pulled the trigger but there was only silence, "Crap."

When the last of the smoke cleared it revealed Garand holding back a sword between the knuckle guard and blade of his knife, with the barrel of his gun firmly planted between the breasts of Signum a woman who could be best described as a samurai in pink, complete with pony tail. She withdrew her sword and methodically sheathed it.

"I'm impressed you did much better this time." her approving smile greatly dulled his feeling of disappointment in himself for not being more careful about how he used his last few rounds. She reached out a hand to him. Returning his knife to its sheath he grabbed her by the wrist, accepting the help. Standing next to her he was a full head and a half taller than her. Yet at time he often felt she was as big as he was. The proud way she carried herself, her skill and her professionalism. He knew that in a fight, she would be the best person you could ever ask to have watching your back.

"Thanks Sig," after dusting himself off he released the slide catch on his pistol allowing the action to go forward before returning it to its holster. He snickered, "The carts seem to be about as ready as they're going to be, same with the body armour," the two started making their way to a set of stairs in the far corner.

"Hopefully when the development is finished they will be enough to fill the gap in combat abilities between our lower class personnel," Signum told him. Garand stopped at the stairs and gestured with both hands for her to go first. Leading the way she continued, "It's ironic that we are using a system based on the same Anti Magic Fields and Combat Cyborg technology that demonstrated the military's short comings to improve ourselves."

"Only fools don't learn from their enemy," he pointed out as he pulled down his face wrap, "So how much damage did those rounds actually do, despite your Jacket I mean?" He asked with great curiosity.

"The ones from your rifle made it past my shield only about fifty percent of the time. After penetrating the shield my Barrier Jacket stopped them as well as reduce the stopping power," a small smirk slipped across her face, "Although, Belkan Jackets are designed to withstand attacks that would destroy a Mid style Jacket. That said, we are only using training rounds."

"True," Garand responded, "But the live rounds have already been proven to punch through most Jackets. Their plenty effective, not much will stop multiple bullets with 2,460 Joules worth of armor piercing energy. Besides I would rather not shoot at you with live rounds," he told her with a chuckle, "Any way we aren't out here to test the rounds. These last exercises are meant as acid tests. We need to ensure the new kit can handle a serious beating," Garand smirked, "Like being thrown across a room into a brick wall."

Signum briefly touched a spot just above her naval, "I know," she paused, "Well Jacket or not it seems I'll have the bruises from those training rounds."

"Really? Can I see?"

She sighed, "Shouldn't you try to be more professional while working?"

"I' am being professional, in my own way, beside we're in the field."

She concealed a small chuckle, "Your professionalism seems to leave something to be desired."

"Sorry ma'am I'll work on that," he answered sharply.

"See that you do," Signum seemed to be teasing him rather than scolding him. Once on the roof Garand sat down on the ground and took a drink from the hydration pack on his back, "How did your body armour perform?"

He tapped his torso, "I think you bruised a rib or two when you knocked me around. Other than that scrapes and gashes mostly."

"Are you all right?"

Her concern seemed to please him. He took in a deep breath and slowly released it, "I'm still breathing so I'm good to go, up for round two?" His confident smirk made her wonder if he was serious. He keyed his throat mike "Tango One, Charlie One."

"Tango One, send," It was the same female voice from before.

"Tango One, Sierra complete. Request air lift, over."

"Charlie One, Roger ETA one zero mikes over."

"Roger, out," He looked over to Signum, "After the debrief want to grab an early dinner?"

"Thank you for the offer but there is some work I would like to attend to once we are done."

"Oh well," he was a little disappointed, "What about after your shift? We could go for a drink and its wing night at the pub?"

"Perhaps."

It was not long before they could see the helicopter making its approach. The aircraft stopped in a hover a few feet above the building and opened its rear hatch. Garand climbed on board, pulling himself up onto the ramp. Holding onto the actuator for the rear hatch with one hand he reached out to Signum with the other. She took hold of his wrist and he pulled her up into the aircraft. As the helicopter began its assent Garand used the chance to pull her in closer to him then was really necessary.

"Signum!" a small voice shouted, "Did you kick his butt?" A very small girl, with red hair and bat like wings, wearing a brown TSAB uniform fluttered about the cabin, punching a nonexistent opponent.

"That's not important Agito," Signum gently pushed away from Garand and deactivated her device, switching her cloths back to the same uniform worn by Agito. With only one minor difference, a white trench coat worn over her uniform, "We came here to test a new weapons system, not have a duel."

The tinny girl clicked her tongue, "But you still beat him right?" she placed her hands behind her head, "All these fancy new weapons don't mean anything. No matter how hard a Black Boot try's they'll never hold a candle to a real mage."

Garand looked at Agito confused, "Strange don't mosquito's normally die off this time of year?"

The mocking grin on his face ignited anger in her voice, "What was that!" She shouted crossly, "I think you need to be taught a lesson!" The small girl promptly formed a fire ball in her hand and hurled it at Garlands' head.

"Gah! Fucking fairy!" After slapping out the flames on his head he glared at her, "I got a can of one hundred percent DEET with your name on it!"

Agito flew right up to Garlands' face, parking herself just in front of his nose, "What was that?" She steamed "This time I'll do more than singe a few hairs!" This time she prepared two small fiery spheres, fully intent on burning off every hair on his head.

"Try it Tinker bell!"

"That's enough, both of you." Signum calming scolded.

Agito grudgingly allowed the fire balls to dissipate. Garand circled past her and sat down on the jump seat. There was the distinctive rip of Velcro as he removed his plate carrier then placed it on the floor. Rotating his left shoulder he sighed displeased. He recalled Shamal's face and shuttered slightly at the thought of being in her care. Though well aware of her skill as a doctor something about her, just made him feel irrationally uneasy.

"Looks like I'll need Shamal to check me out when we get back," he leaned back in his seat hopping to relieve a portion of the discomfort of the bruised ribs. The amount of relief he gained however, was merger and made little difference.

The helicopter made its way over the old city and across the bay. On the opposite shore was the TSAB training facility where the development program was run from. Circling around the main building the helicopter landed on a concrete pad in front of a large hanger. As the rear hatch opened Garand gathered up his kit and slung it over his shoulder. Stepping off the aircraft along with Signum, they found Shamal waiting with a smile that made both of them slightly uncomfortable. Though no fault of her own, despite being genuine, it often made them feel as if she knew their darkest secrets and was merely waiting for the chance to use them to black mail them.

"Welcome back," she cheerily greeted. Immediately she noticed that Garand was holding his left side, "Oh? Are you all right?"

"He seems to have bruised his ribs," Signum responded. Again Shamal smiled this time it made Garand even more concerned, enough so that he felt he had to speak up.

"It's just a bruise ma'am it's not like I need major surgery," his firm tone seemed to have no effect on the woman at all.

"Well I'll be the judge of that, I'm the only doctor here, so I'm the only one who's qualified to make that decision," she gestured with one hand towards the main building, "Just follow me to the infirmary,"

Uneasily, he complied, "I'd like to know who gave you those qual's," he said under his breath making sure not to look at her back. Thinking for a moment on the subject of injures he realized Signum had not spoken about hers' though he shrugged aside the thought deciding she would tell her by the time they got to the infirmary

"Signum how are you? Any injures?" Shamal enquired

The question made Signum oddly nervous for the same reason as Garand, "I'm Fine,"

At the same time Garand let go of his side in order to lift his shirt and examine the site of the injury, wondering just how big his bruise was.

"Nothing significant," she continued.

Hearing how Signum replied to Shamals' question drew him away from his self-examination, "Wait didn't you say you had some nasty bruises?" Signum gestured to him to be quite but he happily ignored her. He enjoyed taking the chance to tease her a bit, "Yeah I remember you told me I got you really good right here," he reached over attempting to tap the spot above her naval with the back of his hand but she easily avoided it.

"You're mistaken!" The knight insisted.

"You mean right here?" Shamal prodded Signum in the same spot he had tried to hit and she winced slightly, "I guess you'll be joining us won't you Signum."

Agito fluttered her way over to Garand and pulled on his ear, "You big idiot!"

"Hey stop that!" He shooed her away with his free hand.

Reaching the rear entrance of the building the group encountered Nanoha Tachamchi along with Vita as they were leaving. The moment Garand spotted Nanoha the first thing that popped into his head was the word, bitch. She was the last person he wanted to see. It was as if she had appeared simply to ruin his perfectly enjoyable day.

"Good afternoon." Nanoha greeted politely.

As soon as she started talking Garand felt the need to stark barking at her but instead chose to simply glare at her.

"Hey guys," Vita added.

"Are you done for the day?" Shamal asked.

"Not quite," Nanoha brushed aside a few loose strands of hair, "We still have one last training session with the new recruits before we finish for the day.

"It must be tough working these long days when you'd rather be at home with Vivio," Shamal's voice had a slight air of encouragement.

"It's fine, Fate was able to go home early today so she wouldn't be alone."

Signum took a moment to look over at Garand, concerned that his head might soon explode. She was well aware of his disdain for the young woman but hoped he could keep his temper under control. She found him scowling at the Ace of Aces.

Until Vita drew his attention, "Hey big guy," the small woman grinned, "Scare any small children lately?" Though it seemed she was trying to be humorous Signum could detect Vita had slightly less than humours intentions for her comment.

"Nope," he said proudly. He had forgotten about Vita's presence, the two of them shared a kind of rivalry based on insults. They would regularly try to outdo each other sometimes taking the jokes a little too far. Garand felt relieved that Vita was there to distract him from Nanohas' presence, "Did you get mistaken for a lost child again?" The two glared at each other grinning like they were trying to egg the other on into throwing a punch.

"Nanoha we need to get going," Vita urged breaking off from her glaring contest with Garand.

"Right, we'll see you later," Nanoha hurriedly chirped. As the two left Garand angrily gave Nanohas' back the finger.

Signum sighed relieved, "At least you didn't get into another shouting match with her," she noted as they continued into the building.

"I hate that rabbit. Everything about her just pisses me off," After the brief vocalization of his hate for Nanoha his mood improved somewhat.

"Maybe you have an inferiority complex?" Agito chuckled.

"No comments from the peanut!"

"Now, now calm down," Shamal urged as they climbed the stairs to the second floor. Following Shamal down the corridor they were lead into the infirmary, "Step into my parlour," she told them with the same disconcerting smile she had used earlier.

Garand snickered and pointed towards the door with his thumb, "You first Sig."

A roll of bandages and a cold compress later Signum and Garand waited on opposite sides of a white curtain divider for Shamals' approval of their condition. Garand looked himself over briefly examining the bandages on his torso as if searching for a flaw in the workmanship then got up from the bed and hopped up and down twice.

"Is something wrong Mr. Garand?" Shamal asked looking away from her computer terminal.

"No, just glad you left all my limbs attached."

"Pardon?"

"Never mind, so can I get dressed?" he asked picking up his pants from off the bed.

"Yes that's fine, by the way are your knew tattoo's finished now?" Shamal added.

Garand showed her the outside of his fore arms. On them ingrained into his skin were two broad swords the tips pointing to his wrists they were intricately designed and beautifully collared. On the blade of each was an inscription had, on his right was Absolute and on his left was Force.

"Yeah, what do you think?"

"I think tattoos are a silly thing to do to your body," Garand sighed in disappointment his hope for a compliment dashed. Shamal stood up and turned off her terminal, "Well I have a few things to attend to so I'll see you at the debriefing. After gathering up a few things she left with a smile and a farewell.

"Still alive Sig?"

"Of course." she told him plainly.

"Still got all your body parts?" He could hear a faint snicker from behind the curtain.

"Garand?"

"Yeah," he responded as he put on his pants trying to avoid disrupting the bandage on his left leg.

"Why do you dislike Nanoha so intensely?"

"Well a lot of little things I guess. The way she talks, her training methods, her trick smile, the list is just too long to go through really," the unexpectedness of her question caught him a bit off guard, there was a more specific reason for his dislike of her but it was one he did not have interest in sharing.

"You really shouldn't allow your personal feelings to affect your work relations," her sound advice was something she had brought up several times in the past in regards to Nanoha.

"I know and I don't. Well most of the time," as he sat down on a stool next to the bed he started to slip on his boots. Growing tired of the subject of Nanoha he wanted to change the topic before the name irritated him any further, "So how's the boss been doing? It's been a while since she was with us for a debrief."

"Hayate is well, but she seems to be a little over whelmed recently."

"Well we are nearing crunch time I guess. The projects' completion date is set for January but we still have plenty to do," Garand stood up and reached for his shirt. He could sense an air of concern for Hayates' well being emanating from Signum. In the hopes he might be able to somehow help lift some of that concern he continued, "Is it just me or do the higher ups enjoy running her ragged?"

The knight did not respond immediately, instead she took a long calculated pause, "A lot of people still feel threatened by her abilities and by we her knights."

"Even after all of you've done for TSAB?" He slipped into his shirt he gathered up his kit.

"Yes, despite what we have done to assist TSAB they seem to try their hardest to keep us separated or buried under a mound of assignments, and recently Nanoha and Fate have been receiving a similar treatment as well."

"So are you concerned TSAB is going to intentionally run Hayate into the ground?"

"Yes," the simplicity of her answer spoke volumes. It was not hard for him to realize that this was not a mere idle concern but at the same time he believed that it was merely the result of her over protectiveness.

He approached the fabric barrier, "You decent?"

"Yes," he rounded the curtain and found her fastening the last button of her white dress shirt.

"Don't sound so concerned she has you and the other knights looking out for her."

She reached for her tunic, "I'm aware of that and I will defeat anyone who would dare to harm Hayate or those she is close to her. However, there are some threats that cannot be defeated with simple strength."

Garand scratched his chin as he watched her put on her tunic, "Stop sweating it I highly doubt anything is actually wrong. You're just letting your over protectiveness get the better of you."

"I suppose you're right."

"Besides you got me around now too," grinning confidently he struck his chest with his fist.

"I mean no offence but you're."

Garand stopped her, "Not part of your family right? Doesn't mean I don't hold similar sentiments. You're forgetting just how big I owe Hayate. Risking my neck for hers' would be the least I could do," his grin reappeared, "Although, if you're really hung up on that, not in the family part, there is a way around that."

Signum shook her head exhibiting a slight smirk, "Very funny," She brushed past him headed for the door.

"Who said it was a joke," he had said exactly what he was thinking, though it was truthfully in part still a joke. Their relationship was still, at this point, just one of friendship despite his attempts to advance it.

"We should hurry." she instructed unfazed.

"Yes ma'am."

Outside they were joined by Agito. Who had gown rather impatient, "Are you finished?" The miniature red head asked.

"Yes, Shamal cleared us to return to our duties," Signum told her partner.

"You didn't think we were that badly hurt did you? Give us some credit," Agito seemed perturbed at the prospect of Garand being relatively unhurt. He held out his hand, "Come on days not done yet," Agito ignored his hand and fluttered over to his left shoulder and perched herself on it.

"Let's get this over with," she ordered pointing down the hall.

* * *

After a lengthy and in depth debriefing with Hayate and a representative from Trident Industries the company manufacturing the new weapon system Signum and Garand parted ways. Garand had been tasked to review potential candidates for a full platoon to be outfitted with the new equipment, now that the last of the stress testing was wrapping up. Signum had various paper work and other smaller tasks to complete. What remained of the day wore on and the Sword Knight had been fully immersed in her work. When she finally took a moment to relax and look around she realized she was the only one in the office.

"Agito?" She called stretching out her arms.

Normally Agito would have promptly answered but only a lazy silence responded to her. She looked around then checked the clock on her desk. It was well past ten pm she had likely gone home with Hayate. She then recalled Garlands' invitation to join him for wings and beer but it was too late. By the time she would arrive at the pub the kitchen would be closed. She sighed in dismay at her forgetfulness though it was her own fault for letting herself become far to immersed in her work to even notice the passage of time. Gathering up her things she prepared to leave for home. After a quick check to ensure she had everything she shut down her terminal and left making certain to turn out the lights. The halls of the headquarters building were empty and only partially lit. As she made her way through the halls she had a strange feeling of laziness and loneliness mixed together in the silence of the empty building.

These long nights seemed to have become more and more frequent over the years. Every time she worked these late nights she always felt the same sense of loneliness, but this was not all she felt. A creeping unease crawled up from within her. Sometimes, it felt as if she was being observed, at others a small nameless fear bubbled up from within her heart. It was disconcerting for her; she was unable to understand what caused these feelings. She had always been happy and satisfied living as Hayates' guardian and as a soldier of TSAB and she had no shortage of friends, but for the last few years every now and again this feeling would emerge. Worse still, this issue was becoming more frequent. The only solution she had found that could alleviate this feeling was to return home, but even then it did not seem to completely vanish. She stopped in the hall and leaned her back against the wall and looked up the darkened white ceiling. This was becoming a problem she thought. It was something she needed to address but at the same time she could not bring herself to show this developing weakness to those she had to protect she needed to think of another option but for the moment all she could do was stare at the empty ceiling as the feeling seemed to worsen. Eventually she was able to push aside the feeling far enough to start back down the hall, eager to return to her family. As she arrived at the front entrance an elderly guard behind the security desk politely offered a farewell as he tapped the button to unlock the front doors.

"Sig!" She turned around. Walking towards her from the mess hall was Garand. He held up a six pack of beer in one hand and a bag most likely containing chicken wings in the other, "Beer and wings as promised," his friendly smile further chased away her earlier feelings.

"Thank you Garand," a small relieved smile slipped across her face.

"Not a problem, besides this way we can drink at one of my favourite spots, come on," he waved her over and Signum promptly followed, though she was slightly concerned where exactly this drinking spot was.

Stepping out into the cool stillness of the night they made their way out to the break water that jutted out into the bay giving them a good view of the city on the other side, as its lights glowed gently in the distance. Garand stat down hanging his legs off the edge of the break water, he looked up at her.

"This is it, have a seat," accepting his invitation the Sword Knight sat down while he placed the beer and the box with various flavours of wings between them.

"Did you find any units that meet our requirements for testing," she asked.

"Negative, I didn't even look. I'm going to build a unit from scratch to make sure we get exactly the right personnel," he took a beer bottle from the box and after opening it he handed it to Signum, "Got wrapped up in your work again didn't you?"

"Yes, it seems to be happening more often recently," she took the open bottle from him. Garand took a bottle for himself and twisted the cap off, "But why are you still here?"

"Cause I invited you to beer and wings," he raised his bottle to her with a grin and she smiled in return her feeling from earlier now gone, "To the best CO in TSAB."

"To good friends," she added raising her beer to his. Both then promptly to a long drink, "Did you give any thought to what I said about joining TSAB after this project is completed?"

"Not really," he took a wing from the box, "I've served in the military, I've worked as a PMC and even as a mercenary. I was thinking of trying something new," he took a large bite out of the wing in his hand.

"Such as?"

"No idea."

Signum snickered and shook her head. The two sat watching the city in the distance filing themselves with beer and chicken while enjoying conversations about nothing and telling amusing tails. As the time crawled forward and the bottles of beer began to run empty the two felt an enjoyable contentment both from the food and the company. As they neared the end of the last two bottles snow began to float down from the starry sky highlighting the evening. They silently watched the snow fall as they drank the last of the beer. Signum however paused and stared into the nearly empty bottle.

Garand noticed this right away, "Something wrong?"

"How are we getting home?" She asked with utmost seriousness.

Garand took another drink of his beer, "Worry about that after we're done drinking."

"I'm not walking again, it was two am by the time I got back last time," she scowled.

"Nothing wrong with walking!" He shouted proudly. Signum chuckled at his apparent enthusiasm as the last of the beer disappeared from their bottles.

* * *

Authors notes:

I've learned a lot since I started writing this fan-fiction and I expect to learn a lot more before I'm done. As a result of what I have learned thus far I have decided to back track a bit and re-edit the earlier chapters. I won't change anything story wise aside from a few blatant discrepancies and the like. As always thank you everyone for all the help you have given me. One last thing the dedication at the top is for my Grand Father a man who I respected, even though at times I did not like him. We both chose the same way of life and I'm proud to have called him family.


	2. Chapter 2

A high pitched and obnoxious electronic buzz filled the small, plain and undecorated apartment that Garand resided in. Rolling over in his bed he groped around with one hand searching for his alarm clock. Finding it he switched it off glaring menacingly at it as if it had caused him deep offense. Although he enjoyed mornings, he found getting started was always a choir. Continuing to glare at the clock his eye lids began to feel heavy.

A second even more obnoxious alarm abruptly sounded. He fumbled with the clock again striking the off button to no avail. Due to his morning haze it took him a moment to realize it was not the clock next to his bed making the sound. He growled and opened his bed side table and angrily fished around inside. However, to his dismay, there was no pistol inside. He checked across the room. On top of his gun cabinet was his second alarm clock and without the firearm to shoot it with, he was forced to get out of bed.

He slowly sat up as his morning haze cleared. Getting out of his bed he sauntered over to the second clock and deactivated it. After a pause he took in a deep breath and did a few stretches and jumping jacks to jump start his circulation. Now somewhat more awake he rechecked his clock it read six thirty am. It was time for a morning run, he quickly change into a set of track pants and a bright red hooded sweater. Once he had his shoes on he picked up his keys and made his way out of the apartment.

It was a cool and brisk day as the sun reluctantly made its way up the horizon. The PMC started his run with a brisk walk then moved into a light jog. His apartment was in a suburb not far from the base. The area was popular with TSAB personnel and their families. There were plenty of parks, schools were close by and it was a mere one hour jog to work, an hour and twenty minutes if you took the scenic route that weaved through the parks. Before making his way to the base however he had to make a stop.

Arriving at a large house Garand knocked lightly on the door. It was the Yagami house hold. When Hayate first brought him to Mid-childa to work on the project she had made certain to have everything he would need prepared in advance, that included residence, furniture and even a fully stocked refrigerator. She had also informed him that if he ever had any trouble that he was free to drop by. Though, the only time he did come by in the 11 months since he arrived was during his morning PT.

"Just a moment," Signum answered from behind the door. Moments later, it opened and she stepped out wearing her own PT gear, a pair of pink and white track pants and a sky blue sweater. Carefully she closed the door behind her and the two jogged off at a brisk pace.

"Did you see the news this morning?" She asked.

"Negative."

"The TSAB Oversight Comity got approval to hold a demonstration today. Most of downtown will be flooded with protesters so if you plan to go to the army garrison you will have to take a detour."

"Actually, I was going to go to the personnel section at HQ. What time were they going to start?"

"Ten this morning, but why go to HQ?"

"I'd rather start at HQ to compile the list. They retain personnel records of all TSAB members, not just the ones posted to a particular base like at the Garrison," Garand pulled the hood of his sweater over his head, "So what exactly is TOsC protesting about?"

"They are demanding the resignation of high ranking members of TSAB. They are also requesting the formation of a civilian organization to oversee TSAB projects and operations, as well as the disclosure of all classified operations."

Garand laughed, "That will never happen. Civies don't understand that there are tasks and information that should never see the light of day. It's the same with any military or government," he took a slight pause as he recalled his first meeting with Signum and Hayate, "Come to think of it I'm here because of a tasking like that."

"What do you mean?" Signum asked with notable interest.

"You remember when we first met? When you found me I had just finished working a black opp. and my handlers went and turned on me. They figured killing me and my team would be the best way to keep the opp. secret. Unfortunately, they aren't an organization that's easy to escape from."

"As I recall the first thing you did was point your gun at Hayate," she noted with a small smirk.

"And you kicked the crap out of me for it. How did you two find me anyway?"

"Hayate had received a message from an acquaintance on Earth. It indicated that if we wanted to develop a fire arms based magic system we would need someone like you to assist us. That person gave us your location."

"Who was the acquaintance?"

"I don't know she never told me," Signum answered pulling the hood of her sweater over her head.

Garand thought for a moment, "Damn I wonder who it was."

The two made good time despite taking the scenic route through the park. After arriving at the base they parted ways. Signum headed directly to the headquarters building while Garand made his way to the hangers.

After washing up and putting on a uniform Signum found she had time to spare and decided to go to the mess for breakfast. There were few people in the mess this time of day. The trainees would eat around six and most others would eat at home before coming to work, so the line was conveniently short. Upon requisitioning a well-balanced meal she looked for a spot to sit.

"Signum! Over here!" Vita called out.

Signum tracked the small mages voice to a table next to the large bay windows of the mess hall, "Good morning," Signum greeted joining her in the seat across from her.

"Is the badger here too?" Vita scanned the mess hall looking for any sign of Garand.

"No he went to the hanger to pick up his truck," Vita almost seemed disappointed, "Were you looking forward to another bout of insults?"

She shrugged, "It's useful practice for coming up with new things to ridicule the recruits with."

"Speaking of which shouldn't you be with Takamachi?" Signum asked before taking her first mouth full of food.

"I'm on standby because of the protest. The brass want to be ready just in case," she glared out the window displeased as she placed her chin in her palm, "Whoever it was that leaked the info about the JS incident has really caused a lot of trouble."

Signum nodded in agreement, "Secrets tend to be rather difficult to keep hidden. I'm not surprised that TSAB's involvement in the JS incident was exposed."

"And now because of a few bad apples all of TSAB is being viewed with suspicion," Vita grimaced.

"It only takes one mistake for those that trust you to lose that trust. It also does not help that TSAB's action had no small repercussions. Providing a known terrorist with financial backing, facilities, resources and human test subjects, these are things few people could over look."

"I guess, all we can do now is ride it out. By the way you sure got home late last night and to top it off you didn't take your car home, what were you doing?" Vita asked leaning forward as a mischievous smile spread across her face.

"I finished late last night then I had a drink with Garand."

The plainness of her reply disappointed the Hammer Knight, "Sounds boring, speaking of the badger one of these day he and Nanoha are going to tear each other apart, I just know it," she folded her arms, "Ever since the incident when he first arrived they've been like cats and dogs."

"What happened?" Signum asked intrigued. She realized this was a good chance to find out the real reason behind Garand's negative feelings towards the Ace of Aces. It was something she had tried to pry out of him several times but he always gave the same indistinct answers.

"He didn't tell you?" Signum shook her head as she put another full fork in her mouth, "This was before he officially joined NEDS. He wanted to get a feeling for the combat skills TSAB members have. So, he joined the Advanced Combat School for part of the standard six week course. Of course his instructor was Nanoha. At first everything was fine, though he didn't like her friendly training style. One day, three members of his course got reckless during a mock battle with her. As usual she went off into one of her White Devil moments and severally injured them to get her point across. Two of them had to be pulled off the course, the third released from the military the next day."

"So that's what started it?"

"Yeah, but it gets better. He's the type to expect the instructor to sock you if you step out of line, but Nanoha sent the three trainees to the hospital with severe injuries for what he saw as perfectly acceptable. So he lost it, he rushed up into her face and started yelling like he was the instructor. He let her have it for a good fifteen minutes and every time she tried to speak up he always cut her off with something like, did I ask you to fucking speak?" She tried to imitate Garand's deep barking voice, "After that he found out about similar incidents in the past and it just kept getting worse from there."

Signum seemed unsurprised. "I should have known it was something like that," she briefly considered if it might be possible for the two to reconcile the issue between them, but the Knight quickly pushed aside the idea. She decided it was best not to meddle with the issues the two shared.

* * *

On the far end of the flight line was a large nondescript hanger with the number 6 painted on its outer walls. Inside was the home of the New Equipment Development Section, Ned to those who worked there and NEDS to those who didn't. Within these walls a team of Trident Industries and Castle Armaments technicians, as well as TSAB personnel worked on the development of the new cartridge systems and AMF body armor. Garand's official position within the group was Lead Weapons Testing Engineer. In short, he was in charge of weapons testing at NEDS. Under his command were three other test engineers. Each one tasked with a different aspect of development.

The project's name was Sierra and was broken up into 3 sections. Each section was worked on by different arms manufacturers. Sierra 1 worked on the development of large scale Anti Magic Weapons for use on battle ships and as artillery. Sierra 2 developed Anti Magic based defensive systems such as shields, dampening fields, and body armor. Sierra 3 was slightly different and it consisted of two companies one developing the mass production cartridges for use by mages. The other, was in charge of the Solid Mass Based Cartridge System, but they also developed specialized explosives. Additionally there were two groups set up to test the equipment from each section. The first was NEDS they were tasked with testing all Mass Based small arms, body armor and Vehicle mounted weapons. The second was the Naval Test Center or NTC. They were tasked with testing everything else.

The collective goal of the project was three fold. The first was to develop effective AMF fields to be used for defense and security purposes. Second was the creation of a mass producible magic cartridge system for use by TSAB with the intention of increasing the combat effectiveness of their lower class mages. The final goal was the creation of a more 'conventional' mass based cartridge system intended for use in conjunction with AMF body armor and support equipment. This was the aspect of the project Garand worked on. The mass based cartridge system worked by means of a highly classified alloy that composed each projectile wrapped in a full metal jacket. The casing for each round, normally filled with smokeless gun powder, was instead filled with a pre readied magic charge. When the firing pin strikes the base of the round half the magic is converted into an electrical charge that is sent into the round. At the same time the remaining energy generated the explosive force needed to fire the round and actuate the weapons action. In practice the electrically charged alloy rounds radiated a powerful yet tiny energy field that allows the projectile to punch through both a shield then a Barrier Jacket and pass into the target.

There were two types of rounds being developed. First was a non-lethal round that consisted of a smaller than normal alloy core encased by a chalk and wax coating intended for training. The second was the pseudo armor piercing round intended for actual combat use.

Garand stepped out onto the hanger floor wearing his usual multi–cam uniform. Inside the large open space there were two eight by eight light armored vehicles or LAV's each with a 25mm gun turret. One of the two vehicles' had both its front wheels removed along with part of the suspension, as its front end was being worked on by the mechanics. The other was having dummy rounds loaded into its internal magazine to check the auto loader. Garand made his way to the back of the hanger to a heavy steel door. Placing his hand on a palm reader next to it the door clicked and he went inside.

"Vice?" He called making sure the door had closed behind him. The PMC looked around the small room, there were three desks set up near a window that looked out onto the hanger floor, but no one was sitting at them, "Vice?"

"In the armory!"

Garand went to the far end of the small office and made his way to a second steel door this one with a digital lock accompanied by a number pad. After entering his pass code into the lock, he went inside. On the other side was the armory. It was filled with dozens of XCR's, Modified AA 12's, Colt .45's, UMP's, McMillan .50 cal's and .338's. Also neatly stacked on shelves in the back were the AMF armored plates that were used inside the plate carrier that Garand used.

Past the weapon racks and shelves was an open area where various gun smithing tools and work benches were neatly arranged. Sitting at one of these benches, working on a .50 caliber rifle was Vice Granscenic the brown haired marksman who once worked with Section Six as a pilot.

"Did you destroy another fifty cal.?" Garand asked looking over Vices shoulder.

"Actually it was the revised cartridge that did it." Vice held up the bolt from the weapon showing it to Garand, "Somehow the back of cartridge blew out and damaged the bolt face."

Garand examined it, "They must have crammed too much power into it."

"They increased the power more then we requested. They probably thought more was better." He placed the bolt back onto the table. "Luckily it seems once we have this last kink sorted out the fifty caliber rounds will be ready for final testing."

Garand nodded in approval, "That's good. Three calibers down, three to go." He walked over to the rack of pistols and took his custom 1911 from its resting place, "All we have left now is the 7.62x39, the .338 and the 25mm on the LAV's."

"What about the body armor? We still have a lot to improve on."

"I've scheduled some new testing to be carried out on the plates next week. Sierra 2 seems to think they may have found a way to use magic cartridges to up the defensive power of the plates. Also, the new head gear is apparently ready," he slipped his side arm into his thigh holster, "Can I get you to supervise the 25mm test today I need to head to HQ in a hurry to avoid the protesters."

"Sure, not a problem, I was going to run some testing on the .338 but I can do that in the afternoon."

"Thanks," leaving Vice to his work Garand made his way across the room to yet another heavy steel door he placed his hand over a scanner and it unlocked.

Inside were shelves filled with the experimental ammunition being tested by NEDS. Going to the shelf labeled .45, he took two magazines of ACP and three of MUR or Magic Utility Rounds, cartridges used to create shield spells of various types. He placed one magazine of MUR rounds in his weapon and the remaining four into a thigh rig on his opposite leg. Before leaving he entered his name, ID number, type and number of rounds taken into a terminal at the door. Finalizing the entry with a scan of his thumb print the computer automatically logged the date and time.

As he left the hanger heading out into the parking lot, he paused briefly to put on his bush cap, making sure it was centered on his head. On the way out to his truck the tall man saw a familiar motorcycle pull into the parking lot. It was Teana Lanster, she, along with Vice, had been assigned to work under Garand as fellow test engineers and assist with the program. Vice served as his second in command and Teana assisted the two when additional test operators were needed. Above the three off them was Signum. She worked by providing her talents to test the combat effectiveness of the small arms and equipment by putting them through real life situations. As well, the sword knight handled the logistics for the unit with the help of Agito. Finally there was Hayate, she was assigned as the Comanding Officer of the unit. She was responsible for preparing daily progress reports as well as ensuring they had all the resources needed to perform their tasks.

"Morning Lanster!" He called.

"Good morning sir," she responded rushing into the hanger.

Continuing on his way, he approached a large olive drab and black truck that bore a marked resemblance to a long distance racing truck. After getting into the driver seat and starting the engine, Garand promptly turned on the stereo. Heavy Metal spewed forth from the speakers as he buckled his seat belt then pulled out of the parking lot.

Just as he was making his exit the PMC came across Signum and Agito. The Sword Knight promptly flagged him down. Complying with the hail, he pulled up to them.

Garand rolled down the passenger side window, "What's up Sig?"

"Are you still going to HQ?"

"Affirmative," he answered leaning towards the open window.

"Can you take Agito with you? She's overdue for her checkup."

Agito suddenly looked surprised, "What? Why? I feel fine! I don't need some tech to tell me that."

"I know you don't like it Agito, but please go. It's important that you look after yourself. We rely on each other's abilities as partners. If you're unwell it's the same as if I'm unwell," Signum's soft almost motherly tone caused a small smile to sneak across Garand's face. Agito seemed to be the only one other than Hayate that she would use such a tone with. It was no surprise to him that when the Yagami family lived on earth, Signum had often played the part of Hayate's parent.

Agito hung her head low, "Fine but next time you better come with me."

Signum smiled at her, "I will, I promise."

"Come on Tinker Bell I'll buy you an ice cream after!"

Agito flew into the open window of the truck, "Don't treat me like some kid!" She snapped.

"See you later Sig," the PMC said closing the window.

As they drove away Agito sat down on the dashboard, staring out the windshield, "It's too cold for ice cream anyway."

"I guess so," he said flatly

"But maybe some cake," she told him under her breath.

"Say again?" He asked with a grin.

"I said you should get me some cake instead!" She shouted.

Garand chuckled at her. As she sat on his dashboard, fuming, all he could see was the image of a selfish little girl.

* * *

Garand walked through the halls of the TSAB headquarters, with Agito perched on his shoulder. Finding the Device Maintenance Section had proven a bit more trouble than the PMC had expected. After a few wrong turns Garand made an inquiry for directions and discovered he had been on the wrong floor. Now on the right track he noticed that Agito was becoming steadily more and more uneasy.

"You ok? You look like you want to book it for the door?"

It took her a moment to answer, "I don't like labs or doctors."

"So that's why you've been putting this off?" He had wondered how Signum had allowed Agito to put off her checkup. She was normally very strict about timings and appointments. More than likely the knight simply had a soft spot for her small partner, just as she did for Hayate, "We all have to do things we don't like. Sometimes you just have to suck it up," she did not answer him. "Or maybe you're just scared?" He teased, "You really are just a kid."

He felt her grip on the seam of his shirt tighten. The action clued him in, despite even his poor social skills. He realized there was more to Agito's reasons for not wanting to go for her exam, other than simple dislike for labs and doctors. As such, he took his joking no further, "Don't sweat it I'll stick around during the exam. If they try anything I'll put two in their face."

"You're the last person I want looking out for me," she paused, "but it's better than being alone."

"Fuck'n eh," he barked

Upon reaching the maintenance sections lab Agito seemed slightly less concerned than before and hastened to get into the scanning device, eager to finish her checkup as soon as possible. Observing from the control room Garand leaned against the back wall of the lab while at the same time skimming through the personnel files he had acquired on his PDA.

"It will be just a few more minute's sir," the female Technician told him.

"Roger," tired of reading the records he returned the PDA back into his pocket and began pacing about the room examining the various devices that had been brought in for maintenance. Each one that was being examined including Agito was suspended in individual, glowing, green cylinder. The devices that were ready were neatly placed and tagged on a shelf on the opposite wall. Examining the finished devices he took note of the various shapes and designs. Earrings, gloves, key chains even a teddy bear, "Can you make a device look like anything?" He asked.

"Just about, what's important is the core you can mount it in anything as long as it's the right size."

He leaned in close looking over the teddy bear device, "These things are some amazing pieces of kit. A weapon, body armor and counter measures all packed into this tiny package. Too bad you need magical ability to use them."

"That's not entirely true. Anyone can use a device however with no magical abilities they are unable to use its combat functions."

"Now that you mention it, I remember someone telling me that during my orientation. When they tested me for ability I came up empty," off to the left he noticed a familiar red sphere, "I know that marble," he took a step side ways to re-examine the sphere, "Thought so it's Raging Heart."

The technician looked up from her console, "That's right we finished its maintenance yesterday."

Garand picked up Raging heart with his thumb and fore finger. "Hey Heart you awake?" it did not respond, "Can someone with no magic create a Barrier Jacket?" He started juggling Raging Heart from one hand to another tossing it high into the air.

The technician did not seem to notice this. She was far to immersed in the data on her screen, "Yes. The Jackets are created by the device using surrounding matter, normally your clothes. It then reorganizes the materials and reinforces the structure using magic. If you have no magical abilities then it simply reorganizes the surrounding matter. Some devices are capable of absorbing additional matter to create stronger Jackets. The devices used by heavy weapons mages or EOD are the only ones that are able to do this though," the technician started to look up from her screen again and Garand quickly stopped his street performer routine, "Your friend's all finished."

"Great," he looked over Raging Heart, "Shame I can't make proper use of one of these," he reached out to place Raging Heart back on the shelf, "All I'd have to do is call set up and I could be a walking artillery peace," he grinned at the thought.

"Roger set up," a synthetic voice called.

"Huh?" A sudden flash of light blinded Garand for a moment. When it dissipated he realized he was holding something. Upon closer inspection it was Raging Heart in its staff form. He paused briefly.

"Oops, didn't see that coming," the PMC turned intending to apologized to the technician for meddling with the device but found her trying to suppress a smile, "What?" he asked raising one eye brow. It took him a second to realize what she found so amusing. Examining his cloths he found they had changed to a familiar blue and white color pallet. He now found himself clad in the exact same Barrier Jacket as Nanoha's, skirt, ribbons and all, "God damn it you little red testicle you were faking it!"

"Negative," it responded.

The technician was no longer able to keep her laughter back. She laughed so hard at the sight of the large man now wearing a dress that she nearly fell out of her chair.

"Bull shit!" he grabbed the staff with both hands shaking it as he cursed.

"Garand?" Agito called groggily. He turned to face her and when her eyes focused she was speechless. Her expression was caught somewhere between utter confusion, surprise, and amusement, "No pig tails?" she asked before collapsing onto the table. Her lungs filled with laughter.

"Damn you Heart I'm going to smash you into scrap," he wound back the staff and swung it as hard as he could at the wall.

Mid swing Raging Heart deactivated the Barrier Jacket and returned to its original state. Taken by surprise Garand lost his balance and slammed head first into the wall.

"Damn it!" as he regained his proper footing Raging Heart was floating in front of him, "You're just as big a pest as your boss! There's got to me a hammer here somewhere!"

"Stop it Mr. Garand!" a woman's voice demanded. Garand knew instantly who it was.

"Fuck you rabbit! Don't you have some careers to ruin?" he glared intensely at her.

"All training is on hold today because of the protests," she returned his glare and called her device over to her.

"Your recruits must be relieved," he told her with a leer, "A day you don't send someone to the emergency room is bound to be a decent day, even better if you're nowhere in sight."

"I may be heavy handed but it's necessary," Nanoha responded firmly.

Garand gave her the finger, "Bull shit! Pushups are necessary. Standing at attention for eight hours on the parade square is necessary. Punching an unruly recruit is necessary. Breaking a recruits arm in three places because you're a poor excuse for an instructor, that's not."

"This again?" she folded her arms across her chest, "You just."

Garand cut her off, "Oh I understand. You're an incompetent moron. Have you ever listened to yourself? I'm sorry but if a soldier is unable or afraid to take a risk, he's useless. Do you think combat is some kind of game where you can play it safe? This is not a fucking sport!"

"Of course not! But there are limits. That's what I'm training them to realize."

"Well you're doing it wrong! You're cranking out dumb ass soldier no longer willing to rush in when required to! You do realize some of your recruits may have to become door kickers right? Its takes balls and recklessness to storm into a room when you have no idea what's inside!"

"There are better ways to go about it!"

"Of course," Garand said seeming to calm himself, "but I don't think the city would like you opening doors with 105 shells when there are hostages inside the building."

"This isn't Earth things are different here. Your way of fighting is outdated and pointless."

Garand readied a fist. He had enough of this discussion. All he could think about was getting her to shut her mouth. Nanoha did not flinch in the least at his clenched hand. The two stood in silence staring each other down, when the PMC smelled something burning.

Garand suddenly realized that the hair on the back of his neck was on fire. He franticly slapped at it until it was out. Once the small blaze was extinguished he realized Nanoha had left, "Shit!"

"I really thought you were going to hit her this time," Agito told him.

"Actually I was," he looked over at her, "Until you decided to torch my head again," Agito braced herself for a barrage of complaints from him for lighting his hair on fire the second time in two days, "I suppose it was the best choice. If you hadn't done it I would have busted her jaw." Agito felt relieved, "Now get dressed Shorty we need to be on our way."

Her face abruptly reddened and she ducked behind one of the cylinders. "You could have said something sooner!"


	3. Chapter 3

Update: I took the input i received and made some changes so the progression should be a bit smother now.

Authors note: I took a lot more time with this chapter and made better use of MS word. Hopefully this will further improve my writing, but I'll let you guys make that call. Also if any one is interested in what an XCR rifle and Multi-Cam look like just copy and past the ulr's below

.org/wiki/Robinson_Armament_XCR

.

A small open-air cafe in the downtown business district was filled with customers on an early lunch break. Although cool outside it was still warm enough for hardier individuals to enjoy the fall air. The street alongside the cafe was alive with heavy traffic, large crowds of people made their way to the starting point for the protest. Each one bore their own displeased yet eager expression, ready to draw attention to the issues of TSAB's mistakes. Sitting, observing the procession, while eating a slice of watermelon pie was Garand. Across from him sat a large piece of chocolate cake.

"You're unbelievable. Trying to pick a fight with Nanoha, you must have a few screws loose," The slice of cake told him.

"What can I say? I didn't feel like installing all the screws into my head this morning."

Agito leaned around the slice of cake that was as big as she was, "You know Signum would never let her emotions get the better of her like that," Her proud tone cut into his ego.

"Well I'm not Sig," He took a large and angry bite of pie. He wanted to change the subject before Agito tried to continue along the current topic. The mere thought of the earlier incident angered him, "You know your damn lucky Agito."

"I am?"

"You've got Sig as a partner. Where I'm from people like Sig are hard to come by," He rocked back in his chair.

"Jealous?" Agito proudly puffed out her chest enjoying the thought of being the one envied. Garand was well aware of her jealous streak towards him but the two had never let it become a significant issue.

"Damn strait," He snickered. Glancing out onto the sidewalk Garand made a brief assessment of the protesters. "Look at em all. I hope they all stay in line," Garand took a small drink from the coffee cup that rested next to his pie. He took note of the uniformed personnel that stood watch over the crowds, it was clear TSAB was not willing to take any risks. The personnel on site carefully monitored for signs of trouble and should anything happen swift intervention could be enacted. The heightened level of security demonstrated that the scars left by the JS incident made TSAB far more cautious then they had once been. He checked back over at the slice of cake that was concealing Agito behind it, "Maybe that cake is a bit too much for you to handle?"

"What do you mean?" she asked, cheeks stuffed with cake, "I can just take it to go."

Garand laughed, "Something about eating twice your body mass in cake seems very unlikely."

Something in the corner of his eye caught his attention. He turned in his seat to get a better view. The thing that had captured his attention was a slender, athletic, blonde haired woman wearing a Barrier Jacket, but something was slightly off. Her Barrier Jacket did not match the standard TSAB types or the Special Operations types that he was familiar with. It was black with blue trim. The abdomen, protected by plate armour and the base of the Jacket was a snug fitting body suite. Garand made a long whistle approving of the woman's appearance.

"Hey Agito do you know what branch uses black and blue for their Barrier Jackets?"

Agito stopped eating long enough to answer him, "No body as far as I know."

Garand kept watching the woman hoping she would turn around and he could get a better look at her. In addition, Agito's information made him suspicious of the woman, motivating him to continue observing her.

The woman turned around. Her hair was tied off in a one sided ponytail, but most notable were her eye's, one green and one red. Garand was impressed she was very attractive, but something seemed wrong about her body movement almost as if it was too big for her. She also seemed to be overly observing her surroundings. The woman's eyes briefly met his and she turned away then suddenly turned back approaching their table. Stopping at the table it appeared she was nervous about something other than approaching them.

"Excuse me," she quickly apologized. Garand looked her over. She had to be at least twenty; posture was slightly less than assertive probably related to whatever was making her nervous.

"What can I do for you miss? Looking to join me for some coffee maybe?" his smile seemed to have no effect on her.

"Actually," she responded weakly, "I need to speak to Agito."

Garand was surprised. He not been expecting this person to know either himself or Agito, "Hey Agito, take your head out of that cake. You have a guest."

Agito peeked around her cake, "Vivio?" she asked uncertain and confused.

Two men suddenly approached their table. One of them grabbed the woman's arm, "You're coming with us," he demanded

Garand stood up, "And you are?" he asked clearly

"Stay out of this," The man's partner snapped.

"Are you cops?" neither gave Garand an answer, "I asked you a fucking question shit pump!" he barked.

The man who responded to his earlier question reached into his pocket. "Listen pal this doesn't involve you now step back." He began to remove his hand from his pocket.

Garand grabbed the man's arm. Twisting it around to his back Garand forced him to the ground and continued to twist arm until he felt a pop. A pistol dropped from his grip and the assailant clutched his shoulder. The second man let go of the woman and reached into his coat.

His head was promptly set a blaze as Agito reacted to Garand's actions. Taking the chance, Garand twisted his entire body back, then with a single powerful punch to the side of the man's head, knocked him cold. Garand crouched down and rifled through the unconscious man's pockets very much in the same way a mugger would do so. The man had no ID, cash, or even a set of keys on him. All he had was the pistol he had been reaching for. Garand looked up at Agito who was hovering just above him.

"So who's this?" he asked gesturing with his head towards the blonde woman.

"I think she's Vivio," She answered uncertain.

Garand sorted through his memories for a moment, "Doesn't Takamachi's kid have the same name?"

"I'm saying this is Vivio!"

Garand squinted one eye. He found the idea that this Vivio and the one he was familiar with was the same person. "What?" he looked over at the woman who was apparently Nanoha's daughter, "Last I checked primary school kids don't look like that."

"Actually," the woman said meekly, "I am," she dispelled her Barrier Jacket and as it disappeared her form began to shrink. With the Jacket completely deactivated a girl not more than ten years of age was staring him in the face. For once in his life Garand was speechless.

"What the hell? So is she jail bait or not?" he placed his hand over his face, "Damn I'm so confused right now," he could not determine whether to bash his head into a wall for his earlier thoughts, or scold her for walking around in a body like that when she clearly should not be.

The man with the dislocated shoulder tried to get to his feet but Garand promptly kicked him in the stomach, "So what did you want with Vivio?" The man glared up him. Garand responded with another kick to the abdomen, "Silence is not an acceptable answer." An unmistakable boom echoed through the streets. Garand recognized it as a distant explosion. He checked the skyline, trying to spot the smoke.

A second blast shook the air. This one came from across the street. A bright sphere of fire consumed the front of a building on the opposite side of the road. The supper sonic expansion of the explosive tore through the air in all directions. People were tossed to the ground like broken toys. Hot shrapnel rode the wave of destruction, ripping through flesh and steel. Killing, maiming, destroying everything it touched.

Garand forced himself to his feet as the dust settled. While the ringing in his ears cleared he attempted to reorient himself. To his left was the building that had exploded. A black pillar of smoke emanated from its front, fading into the sky. On his right the cafe, its windows smashed in. All around other victims recovered from the shock wave. Some did not recover their senses. Others lay motionless on the ground in growing pools of blood.

"Vivio, Agito, you two okay?" Garand shouted.

"I'm okay," Vivio weakly answered. Garand crouched down next to her in order to examine her for injures. Superficial scratches dotted her face, nothing that seemed serious. Taking a handkerchief from his pocket, he dabbed it against her skin carefully soaking up the blood in order to confirm that none of the scratches were severe.

"Agito," he called. There was no response, "Agito!" He checked the area around him until he spotted her on the ground nearby, unconscious, "Vivio stay here," Quickly he made his was over to Agito. Prodding her with his index finger, he tried to wake her. "You ok?"

She grumbled slowly sitting up, "What happened?"

Garand gingerly picked her up, "A bombing," while walking back to Vivio he placed Agito in his breast pocket then picked her up. Proceeding to his truck, he placed the still disoriented Vivio into the front passenger seat. After dropping her off Garand went around to the back of the truck and opened the slopped box cover and tail gate. Inside were a stretcher, larger first aid kit, toolbox, and a duffle bag.

"Garand?" Agito asked as she crawled out of his pocket, "What are you doing?"

"First Aid," He slung the bright red kit over his shoulder, "Stay here and contact the rabbit tell her to come get her kid."

"Okay."

Garand moved among the first aiders on the scene and handed out the necessary supplies to those who needed them and help those who needed brief assistance. It was an unpleasantly familiar scene. Dead and charred bodies, dismembered limbs scattered about among pools of still warm blood mixed with concrete dust. Wails and cries of the injured victims filled the street. They were loud enough to drown out the thoughts in your head. TSAB personnel were doing their best to calm and control the situation but it did little to alleviate the chaos. It was all very familiar to Garand. So much so that from his point of view it was merely a routine day in the field.

"We have to move everyone away from here! Hurry the building may collapse," TSAB NCM's had started to direct people away from the site. Garand checked over at the building. The assessment appeared correct; the lower part of structure had crumbled and lost several support columns in the process. Garand quickly change tasks and began aiding in the relocation of casualties, helping one of the first aiders he moved a casualty to safety. As he proceeded back to retrieve another he saw two TSAB members rush inside the building. There was shouting coming from inside, a clear indication of survivors still trapped in the structure.

Without the slightest hesitation he joined the TSAB members in the building. In side were dozens of badly maimed bodies. The two who entered before him began checking the bodies trying to find the ones calling for help. As they searched Garand could hear a woman screaming somewhere in the back of the room. Following the cries, he was able to locate the woman. She was clinging to what remained of what had once been her child, though the bloody mess in her arms hardly resembled one. Getting the woman to move under her own power proved impossible. So he had no choice but to forcibly carry her out. She struggled and fervently objected refusing to leave what remained of her child behind. Hitting him several times with her free hand, she tried to break free. Forcibly picking her up, he lifted her in a firemen's carry. As he draped her over his shoulders, she dropped the small body. It made a gut wrenching moist thud as it struck the ground. Ignoring her continued desperate pleas not to be taken from her child's corpse, he rush back out of the building trailing after the two TSAB member from before both now carrying wounded.

There was an abrupt sound of grinding stone and creaking steel. The outer wall of the building had begun to collapse from the strain of losing nearly half its support columns. As Garand rushed out the building the front face of the structure released large panes of glass from its window's. The debris began raining down onto the street from over head. One of the massive panes of glass impaled the TSAB member ahead of him. His low-level barrier jacket was unable to cope with the impact of the hundred-pound slab of glass moving at terminal velocity. It ripped through his back and exited through his stomach. The young boy he had been carrying tumbled out of his lifeless arms.

In a state of shock, the boy was unable to move. Despite his plight, Garand could only Ignored him. The current casualty in his care had to take priority. Carrying a second would not be possible, especially when the one he was carrying was uncooperative. The building creaked and moaned with greater frequency. As the windows continued to fall from their fittings, Garand pushed his legs harder sprinting out of the path of the debris. When he was satisfied, he was at a safe location he left the woman in the care of a first aider then went back for the boy.

The panes of glass had ceased falling and the building had quieted. By some miracle, the boy appeared unharmed. Taking this as a good sign Garand darted out towards the boy who was still shivering in place from shock. Without slowing his pace, he scooped up the boy and continued running. The building moaned briefly.

Then as if trying to attack Garand it's front face began to fall forward and crumble as if had simply been using the boy as bait to lure him to his death. Not wasting breath on cursing his luck he maintained his sprint but he was not fast enough. Gravity was far quicker than his legs. The shadow of a massive chunk of concrete fell over him. He could not make it clear in time he pulled his pistol in order to create a shield to deflect the slab.

An immense purple magic circle appeared over-head. The slab slammed into the shield and slid down and off to one side. Garand resumed his sprint to safety. Once clear of the danger he rested the boy on the ground. Checking behind him he watched as the rest of the weekend building collapsed onto its self. A cloud of grey dust drifted up from the rubble filling the street. Through the dust he saw someone approaching.

"Hey Sig," He grinned.

"You're lucky," she scolded, "Are you hurt?"

"Negative."

"Really?" she asked displeased, "Then what's this?" She grabbed his fore arm squeezing it tightly. Blood began to soak through the torn sleeve of his shirt. She glared at him unable to hide her concern.

"It's just a flesh wound it's not like it's been completely removed," Garand pulled up his sleeve to expose the wound then held it up to her, "See nothing major. Go help the rescue crews Sig I'll join you after I patch myself up."

"I intend to, but you should just stay out of the way."

Garand sauntered over to his truck and sat down on the tailgate, "I'm not just going to sit here," removing a role of gauze from a second, smaller first aid kit he began dressing the long gash on his arm.

"Just don't get in the way please?" she requested with a sigh.

"Roger, this isn't my first bombing I know the drill," Signum stood and observed him briefly, ensuring that he did not perform inadequate first aid on himself before resuming her duties.

As she left to help with the search for survivors one of the individuals that were watching the scene caught her attention. Something about this man seemed out of place. While the act of watching the site of the incident was not something terribly unusual. There was still something in her gut telling her that his presence was somehow out of place. The man observing the area wore a scarf over half his face and ragged toque concealing his identity. Realizing the man was watching Garand's truck intently, she confirmed her gut feeling. Briefly their eyes met and Signum's gut feeling became more intense. Casually the man turned and started to leave. Signum now fully suspicious of the man began to follow from a distance.

Whoever this man was he seemed to know that she was following. The person weaved through the crowds of people and in and out of side streets. However, she never once lost sight of him even why he had the opportunity to lose her. She began to suspect she was being lead. As he turned into an alley, she briefly lost sight of him. Stopping at the corner she peeked into the alley. What she saw was the man she had been following pushed against a wall by a second man with a large bruise on the side of his face. The injured man seemed angry, belligerent. The man in the scarf looked over at her. Signum felt him smile from behind his garment.

The man in the toque placed one hand on the others shoulder and drove a knife into his abdomen pulling it up inside his chest cavity striking his sternum. Signum rushed into the alley.

"Stop you're under arrest!" she ordered. She readied her sword in a low stance as she rushed into the narrow alley way. The man activated his own device and a long double edged broad sword materialized in his hand.

With a quick swing of the blade he severed the head of the other man then readied himself for Signum's onslaught. Given the tight quarters of the alley way Signum opted to use an over head strike for her first attack. The man's broad sword was unusually long and would be hard to swing in this confined of an area. She hoped to break his collar bone and neutralize him in one attack.

As she brought her sword down on him he responded by raising his sword to block, one of his hands gripping the hilt the other gripping the blade at the opposite end. Signum was taken by surprised by the speed at which he wielded his large weapon. She shuffled back a step and adopted a middle stance her sword angled forward towards her opponent. Even as the two glared at each other Signum could still sense a smile behind the scarf. Whoever this man was he was not a simply a mage with a sword type device. He had genuine skill. His stance, though unfamiliar, seemed solid and left few openings. No words passed between them each waiting to see who would flinch first.

The unknown man was the first to move. Lunging forward he drew back his sword along his left side it was clear to Signum that he was going to slash at her right side. Shuffling to her right she brought herself closer to the wall. The man had no time to alter his attack his long blade was now blocked by the wall. Signum readied her own attack. She would counter as soon as the man either adjusted for the wall or his sword was stopped by it.

Neither happened, the man's sword tore through the brick wall loosing none momentum it continued towards her right side. She quickly guarded her right with her blade. However still in an attack posture, she was not in the proper stance to take the swings incredible force. As a result, the impact threw her into the opposite wall. Regaining her stance Signum quickly responded with an attack of her own. She brought her sword up for a second over head strike. Her opponent moved to use the same block as before. However Signum's over head strike was a feint.

She rotated her swords tip backward bringing it all the way back down then swung up at the man's chin. She missed his chin but struck his sword knocking it from his hands into the air. She pointed the tip of her blade at his throat. There was something wrong that had been too easy she could feel it but she did not see any sign of further attack.

The man activated a second device and another sword identical to the first appeared in his right hand. He swung up at her chin as he weaved to the right and lunged past her. Signum spun around and readied herself for another attack from the man.

His grip on his sword had changed. He was holding the weapon by the end of the blade in a low stance. It was as if he intended to use the sword as a mace or war hammer. The technique was one she had not seen before. The man dashed towards her and swung his weapon across his body. Signum easily avoided the frontal attack and the man struck the brick wall of the ally way with the cross guard of his sword. The wall shook violently as the force from the blow tore open a massive hole in the building. Quickly recovering from the miss the man darted towards Signum. He raised his weapon high intending to perform a quick over head strike. Signum did not have the room to dodge again so she was forced to block. She held her sword over her head.

The man drove his sword down onto hers. She was unable to maintain the block. Her guard broke and the cross guard of the man's sword smashed into her collar bone. The force of the impact shook every organ and bone in her body. Her Barrier Jacket managed to hold against the strike but she had been left disoriented. Taking advantage of the effects of his attack, the man tried to escape down the alley. However she was not nearly as unsteady as he had assumed.

She altered her swords form to that of a whip lined with blade segments. With a flick of her wrist the whip sped forward towards the man. Realizing she was still able to fight the man took to the air. Signum's sword however moved as a living thing. Like a snake it quickly change direction and snapped up at the fleeing man. It coiled its self around his ankle. Heaving down on the hilt of her sword, she violently dragged him out of the sky and slammed him into the pavement.

A cloud of white smoke rose up from where the man had collided with the ground. She wondered if she had struck a gas line. Briefly tugging her swords hilt, she could feel his weight on the far end of the whip. She carefully approached prepared to react to the slightest change. This man had proven himself a powerful opponent. She refused to assume something as minor as this would neutralize him. As she closed the gap the smoke began to clear. She paused briefly waiting for the last of it to dissipate.

The man was gone the end of her sword had been pinned under a dumpster. She quickly pulled back her sword and returned it to its original shape. She swiftly flew up into the air and surveyed the area. There was no sign of the man, he had escaped. Disappointed in herself she returned to the alley to look for evidence of who the man may have been. Inspecting the area around the dumpster she found a familiar canister. It was cylindrical with a white band around the top. On the side in stencilled white letters was 'M18 smoke white'. Signum easily recognized it. This was the same smoke canister being tested at NEDS.

Back at the incident site Garand was leaning against the side of his truck, irritated that he could not leave the scene. He had tried to help the rescue crews move the rubble but he was promptly turned away. The crew pointed out that amateurs should not be permitted to move the debris for fear they might accidently make things worse. When he tried to leave, he could not due to the emergency vehicles blocking the way. In the end, he contemplated leaving the truck but decided it against it. Garand looked over his shoulder into the passenger seat. Vivio was passed out, sound asleep. Despite what had happened she appeared unaffected or perhaps just worn out.

He walked over to the driver side door and reached in through the window. Out of the center console he pulled out a small plastic container filled with dried fruit. He noticed something small move in Vivio's lap, it was Agito. She had received a mild concussion from the blast and was resting with Vivio. With a snicker he wondered if Agito would be angry. It had just crossed his mind that she looked very much like a child's toy. Walking around to the tailgate of the truck Garand sat down. While snacking on the sweetened dried treats he went over in his head what had happened. He was not interested in the bombing, he had seen many of these before and this one was no different. What he wanted to determine was the intent of the two men had tried to acquire Vivio. He had intended to ask them but one had escaped during the chaos. The other had been killed in the blast so he was left with only theories and conjecture.

The train of thought that had been running through his mind halted when he saw a familiar blue and white Barrier Jacket. Nanoha had arrived to reacquire her daughter. He observed her as she worriedly looked around trying to locate his truck. Then something strange happened. She appeared to have taken a moment to calm herself, but as she looked around, she seemed disappointed. It was not the disappointment one would normally expect when observing the failure of an organization to protect those under their charge. The look on her face though subtle, was for Garand, plain as day. She was exhibiting the kind of disappointment normally see on a child when they miss an enjoyable activity. He had seen that look on others before but he felt uncertain about its meaning when displayed on Nanoha's face. To be certain he carefully filed the image away into his mind so he could recall it for later reference.

Subaru who had been one of the responders to the attack approached her. They spoke for a moment before she led Nanoha to his truck. Garand braced himself for the possibility Nanoha might have choice words or angry mother issues she would want to bark into his face.

"Tiny is in the passenger seat," he told her. Nanoha quickly blew past him ignoring his presence. Garand continued to eat his dried fruit content to ignore her as well.

"Thanks for looking after Vivio Mr. Garand. I know you don't like Nanoha but I'm sure she's glad you helped her," Subaru watched him waiting for some kind reply. For some time Garand ignored her, "Mr. Garand?"

He scowled at her, "There is no way I would ever take out my hate for Nanoha on her kid," Subaru was Garand's second least favourite person in TSAB his reason for disliking her though was nothing specific. It could best be described as dislike by association.

She glared at him crossly, "I'm trying to thank you, don't snap at me for it."

"Don't bother just get your ass back out there you should have more important things to do then talk to me," Subaru glided off on her high tech roller blades regretful that she had bothered trying to thank Garand at all.

Nanoha stepped past him again seemingly still intent on ignoring his presence. With Vivio lovingly cradled in her arms she paused to look back at Garand. For a brief moment he thought she was going to thank him, but instead she continued on without a single word of gratitude.

Garand looked down from the tailgate of his truck a large pool of semi dried blood had gathered in the gutter next to it. To most it would be a sight considered as disconcerting. Though to him it was merely nostalgic, a reminder of the world he had left behind. When he came here he had been surprised that nearly five hundred years had passed since the last time this society had seen a war. However he quickly realized that those five hundred years had been dotted with thousands of incidents, terrorist attacks, and insurgencies. He thought about just how many secret operations, convenient accidents, and assassination had to take place over the years to maintain the long supposed peace enjoyed by this world and those connected with it.

"Garand?" Agito called groggily, "Where did Vivio go?"

Garand stood up then turned around, "The rabbit came and got her."

"I think they've finished clearing the road, can we go?"

"Sure," he pulled out his PDA, "I'll contact Sig and let her know what we're doing," As he dialled the number for Signum's cell phone he found his eye's wondering back to the blood in the gutter, "A day without blood is like a day without sunshine," he chuckled as the phone rang.


	4. Chapter 4

Authors note: This chapter was originally longer but I decided to cut it in half. I figured it would be easier to edit and pick up my mistakes this way. If this works out well I might keep the chapter short. Any way enjoy, and don't forget to do reviews and other feed back.

It was a Sunday morning, a day of rest and a time for casual drives through the countryside. On this particular Sunday, a loan black sedan cruised down a dusty, dirt road, surrounded by leafless trees as a clear blue sky hung above. In the driver seat sat Fate Harlaown dressed in a black sweater and white dress. Sitting next to her was Hayate, wearing her TSAB BDU made up of brown cargo pants and matching jacket.

"Thank you for driving me out here Fate," Hayate thanked.

"It's not a problem," Fate looked over her shoulder into the back seat. Asleep and leaning against the car door was Vivio, clinging to her stuffed white rabbit. "I had to come any way, Vivio was insistent on going."

Hayate giggled, "I think it's admirable."

Fate let a concerned sigh escape her lips. As the barren trees streaked by Fate wondered if this little trip was really a good idea. When Vivio came to her the day before, insisting on thanking Garand for his help her first thought was to speak to Nanoha. However, she too was uncertain of how to address Vivio's request. While the two of them thoroughly disliked each other, it did not feel right to tell Vivio not to thank him simply based on that single point. Nanoha struggled with what the right answer as a parent was. In the end, she differed to Fate's judgement and she had decided to bring her to thank Garand. Although, after further thought during the drive she wonder if this was indeed the correct course. The concerned expression plastered on her face caught Hayate's attention.

"Don't worry. It'll been fine." Her simple assurance eased Fate's concern, but only slightly.

As they drew closer to their destination, they could hear a repetition of distinct pops, cracks, and bangs. The farther they went the louder the sounds became eventually the noise woke Vivio.

"Are we there yet?" Her small groggy voice inquired.

"Almost," Fate told her. They drove past a tall flagpole flying a plain red flag marking the entrance to their destination. As they rounded a bend in the road, they came to a large gravel parking lot. At the far end was a long hill with three tunnels that cut through it. Sitting atop it was a small concrete building with an observation deck on its roof. Fate pulled up near the hill and parked the car. The sounds from earlier were much louder now. As Vivio exited the car, the sudden nature of the sounds startled her at first but she quickly got used to the noise. Fate examined the other vehicles parked nearby. There was a green buss, 3 trucks identical to Garand's and an olive drab six by six transport truck, "Is the entire unit here?"

"I think so. Garand is very insistent about unit cohesion." Hayate went around to the trunk of the car and removed two cases of beer. "These range days are his way of allowing the unit to see how their work helps improve the equipment's performance. It also allows for additional data and personal input on the weapons to be collected." Hayate lead them into the closest of the tunnels.

Stopping part way Hayate opened a locker on the wall and removed three sets of ear defenders. Keeping one set for herself, she handed the others to her guests. Fate placed a set over her ears then adjusted the other to its smallest size then placed them over Vivio's ears.

"Make sure not to take these off, okay Vivio?"

"Okay Mama!"

"This way," Hayate told them as they progressed through the tunnel. When they emerged on the other side, they found themselves on a firing range. There were 25 shooting lanes, each occupied by a shooter. Those not shooting were sitting at picnic tables set up behind a red line, "Please stay on this side of the red line." While Hayate and Fate continued, Vivio's attention wondered across the activity that filled the range. She had not seen anything like this before and like all children, new things fascinated her. She paused in order to people watch. Each person on the range wore one of two uniforms. The TSAB members wore the same brown BDU as Hayate. The rest wore the same Muilti-Cam uniforms as Garand.

"Vivio!" her mother called while reaching back with one hand, "This way."

Quickly responding to her mother's call, she caught up to Fate and clasped firmly onto her mother's hand. As they moved towards the far end of the shooting range, the smell of barbeque meat wafted across their noses reminding them that it was approaching noon. Standing in front of a large grill, Garand was basting burgers and bratwurst with the assistance of Signum.

"Mr Garand!" Hayate called.

Garand turned around. Over his uniform, he was wearing a white apron with the image of Daffy Duck on it and beneath the image were the words, 'don't shoot the cook'. It made Hayate chuckle when she saw it and caused Fate question his ability to cook.

"Ma'am!" he saw the cases of beer in her hands and a large smile filled his face, "You brought more beer! I knew there was a reason I liked you."

Signum approached Hayate, "Thank you Hayate, I'll put them in the cooler," Signum reached out to take the two cases of beer from her.

"Thank you Signum," she told her as she handed off the two cases.

"Ms. Harlaown, what brings you out to our range day?" Garand inquired.

Fate folded her arms across her chest, "I came because Vivio has something she wanted to say to you."

Fate did not clearly advertise it but she, like Nanoha disliked Garand, though her dislike for him did not have the same intensity. He was well aware of this. However, he had no issues with her. He learned quickly as long as he remained respectful they could maintain a satisfactory level of civility.

Garand leaned to one side looking for Vivio who was hiding behind her mother clinging to her dress, "So what did you need kiddo?" even though he smiled it seemed to frighten her rather than reassure her. She shrunk further behind her mother.

"Th, thank you." She stuttered quietly.

Garand sighed and scratched his head, then crouching down he rested his arms on his knees. Signum, after placing the beer into some nearby coolers, walked up next to Garand who seemed to be waiting for her. The two had an unspoken agreement; Garand was notorious for his poor interpersonal skills. His tendency to be overly aggressive was often a source of problems. Which is where Signum came into play, she would supplement his social common sense and stop him if she thought he was going to say or do something that could cause problems. However, in instances involving Nanoha, this unspoken agreement was invalid.

"Come on kid that's not how you thank someone," he told her, "You need to stand up straight, look the person in the eye, and speak from the diaphragm." He used the strict tone of an instructor but he made certain not shout.

Fate became concerned that he might raise his voice if Vivio did not take his advice. She looked over to her friend Signum but she seemed unconcerned. Fate felt Vivio's hand briefly tighten on her dress. Fate took it as a sign that Vivio was not going to do as Garand suggested, but before she could intervene, Vivio let go and stood directly in front of Garand.

She looked him directly in the eye, "Thank you for helping me the other day!" her clear tone of voice made him grin.

"Good work kid, and you're welcome," Reached out with his large hand. Vivio drew back slightly but not out of his reach. As he patted her head Fate breathed a sigh of relief. Garand looked up at Signum and Fate raising an eyebrow. "Did you think I was going to start barking like an angry dog?" Fate's refusal to answer provided a sufficient reply to his question.

"You are rather abrasive," Signum reminded him.

"Abrasive can be a useful trait." He pointed out.

"Only to sand paper," Signum told him. Garand tossed up his hands in surrender then returned to the grill.

"Enforcer Harlaown!" Fate turned around and saw Teana greeting her with a wave.

"Teana, it's good to see you. How's your posting at NEDS going?"

Teana placed her hands on her hips and shook her head, "Honestly I was hoping for something in the Special investigations department. Instead I'm stuck at Ned."

"Well it can't be all that bad. You do get to work with Vice after all," Fate's coy tone caused Teana's face to redden slightly, "Besides helping at NEDS will be good for your career."

"I suppose that's true. Since you're here why don't you join use for lunch?"

"Is that alright?" Fate inquired.

Teana smiled again, "It's fine, getting the chance to eat with you would be a great improvement over the usual lunch crowd." Teana snickered as she briefly glanced over at Garand's back.

"Pardon me for being socially inept." Garand barked.

"Somehow, I doubt you're sorry." Teana replied.

Garand shrugged, unafraid to admit Teana was correct, "It will be a bit longer until the food's ready. If you like, Harlaown, you're welcome to try your hand at shooting one of the rifles. I'm sure Lanster would be happy to teach you."

"No thank you."

"Mr Garand," Hayate called, "After Lunch I need to borrow Signum for a while."

"Roger, just make sure ya bring her back with everything still attached."

Fate and Teana took a seat at a nearby picnic table and discussed future career choices within TSAB, Hayate assisted Garand and Signum with the barbeque, and Vivio watched the NEDS members as they fired their weapons at targets down range. Sitting next to her mother, with little to do, she quickly became bored. She wanted to do something, anything. She tugged at her mother's sweater.

"Can I try that?" Vivio asked pointing at one of the shooters.

"I'm sorry, you're a little too young to try shooting a rifle." Fate answered. Vivio pouted briefly hoping her mother would change her mind, but it was to no avail.

It was not long before the food was ready. Garand blew an air horn signalling that it was now time to eat. Everyone present lined up, each was issued two items from the barbeque, a salad item, and a drink. The murmur of conversation quickly replaced the sound of gunfire. Most took their time eating, the rest rushed through their first plate in order to acquire seconds.

Signum and Hayate did not bother with seconds they had a matter that needed tending to. With a quick shout, Hayate let Garand know that she and Signum were stepping out for a walk. After passing back out through one of the tunnels, they walked along one of the ATV trails leading away from the range. The further they went the less audible the voices from the range became until they could no longer hear them at all.

"Signum, I need to talk to you." The concern in her mistress's voice drew her absolute attention, "I'm sure you've noticed it on your own, that something's not quite right with in TSAB." Signum nodded, "Well there," she hesitated unsure if she should continue. She took in a long breath then chose to press on. "There's something I have to do." She stopped trying to collect the right words to continue with, "but in the process I have to do some objectionable things. Signum I need you to trust me. I know this is strange and out of the blue." Hayate stared down at her boots clenching her fists, "I wish I could tell you the details but it could put many people in danger. I can't predict exactly what will happen over the next few months but please whatever happens I need at least you to trust me."

"Hayate, I am and always will be your knight and as you have said many times I am also part of your family," Hayate raised her head and she looked into Signum's smiling face as she softly spoke, "You've done much more for me, for your family, then we could have ever asked for. There is no reason I would ever doubt you. Whatever methods you may chose to use I am certain are selected for good reason. If you can't tell me what you're doing I can accept that as well." Signum could understand her vagueness clearly. Hayate wanted to provide a warning for her, but more importantly, she wanted to tell someone she trusted, at least to some extent, her plans.

Hayate draped herself over her knight clinging tightly to her while sobbing quietly into her shoulder, upset with herself for not being able to disclose more of what she wanted to. Signum put her hand on her young mistress head then wrapped her other arm around her, waiting patiently for her to calm herself.

When Hayate had finally calmed down Signum released her and the two started walking back. At first, neither said anything. They quietly enjoyed the fall atmosphere happy simply being able to spend time together. However, Hayate had one other thing she wanted to bring to Signum's attention.

"Have you been feeling alright lately?" She asked with concern.

Signum's heart dropped into her stomach, "I'm fine Hayate," it was a lie. What Hayate had just told her had left her unfazed but this knew discussion was different. Signum knew that Hayate was asking about her recent unease and she did not want to expose this to her not now.

"Are you sure? It seems like every time you come home something seems to be troubling you." Signum wanted to tell her but she could not. Hayate had just pleaded with her for her trust and indirectly for her strength. She could not bear to show any weakness to her mistress not at a time like this even if it meant she had to tell her a lie.

"I've just be tired recently," she sighed, "Garand keeps dragging me out after work to go drinking," it was a logical explanation one she hoped Hayate would believe.

Hayate appeared displeased and, for a moment, she thought Hayate had seen through the lie, "You should turn him down for a while and get a proper nights rest. I'm sure he'll understand" Signum nodded in agreement thankful that she had accepted her excuse. However, despite her success in avoiding the real reason she felt disappointed in herself for deceiving the woman who had just begged for her trust.


	5. Chapter 5

Author's Note:

Another chapter at last. Nobody seemed to have any majoir issues with the previous chapter so I guess I'm improving. Also i think I've gotten a handle on what people me when they say something sounds "off" or "doesn't flow right" but that remains to been seen. Any way, read away and post your reviews. Oh yes if your eye's start to bleed I take no responsibility.

It had been a very full Sunday for NEDS. After the barbeque, they packed up their equipment and returned to the base. Crowding themselves into the vehicles they brought with them, the convoy of mildly inebriated personnel departed, driven by the few who had chosen not to drink. It was a lengthy drive and most of the passengers were half-asleep when they arrived at the NEDS hanger. The group hurried to unload the trucks and stow the weapons. Afterwards, the less then sober personnel filed into the bus, in order to make it home safely. As the sun began to set the parking lot emptied, leaving only a few behind to make the needed preparations for the next day.

Gathered in a large workshop at the rear of the hanger, Signum, Garand, Teana and Vice were having an informal meeting. They discussed what they wanted to achieve by the end of the upcoming week and the best way to reach those goals. As they debated on what needed to take priority, Garand, tinkered with a large mass of various electronic and mechanical parts neatly spread out across a large worktable. Teana and Vice sat on a pair of stools across from Garand while Signum stood watching him work. Once they had sorted out there objectives for the week, they broke out into small talk, not entirely interested in returning home just yet.

Teana looked over the parts on the table. Scattered among them were books such as; Advanced Device Maintenance, Nature of The Linker Core, Basic Device Construction, Magical Influence on Physics, as well of scores of wiring diagrams and a tattered leather note book.

"What exactly are you building?" She asked picking up the book titled Advanced Device Maintenance then flipping through it.

"Just working on my hobby." Hunching over one of the wiring diagrams, he scratched his head.

"Teana did you want to go out somewhere for dinner tonight?" Vice asked.

"Definitely, could we go to that place along the water front? The one that had the amazing cheese cake," an excited smile over took Teana's face.

"Sure after wards did you want to go to a movie?"

"Actually I was thinking we could go back to your apartment," Teana took Vices hand intent on adding more, however she realized Signum and Garand were watching them.

"Don't let us stop you please go on," Signum told her with a small grin. Teana turned an amusing shade of red.

"Damn Vice," Garand applauded, "So Sig was right, I didn't think you liked em young." Garand folded his arms pretending to look serious, "But isn't she a little too young?"

"Teana is 17 that's the age of majority on Mid-Childia, besides she's mature enough to take care of herself."

"I see," he grinned at Vice, "No worries then. After all every man eventually wants to have a younger woman on their arm."

Vice sighed, "Give it a rest will you?" he pleaded.

"So you slept with her yet?" Garand asked as he reached into a box under the table pulling out some wire.

"Garand!" Teana shouted. Signum and Garand burst out laughing at Teana's rose red face. She grabbed Vice's forearm and dragged him off before anything else could embrace her. Vice waved goodbye trying to hide the triumphant smirk on his face from Teana. As they, left Teana made a point to slam the door.

Signum sat down on the workbench next to Garand and leaned back on her hands. She watched him as he intently soldered a wire to a contact point. Whatever it was he was building he had been working on it for several weeks now, but she could still not tell what it was supposed to be.

"What exactly are you building?"

"It's a surprise."

"A surprise?"

"Yeah a surprise," he dawned a bizarre grin of excitement that made Signum a little uneasy.

"Just don't blow up the hanger, please."

"Yes ma'am." Garand reached into a drawer under the bench and fished around looking for something. A silence passed over the two. It quickly made Signum uneasy and she tried to think of something to say to start another conversation. Before anything came to mind Garand started a new topic as he went back to soldering, "I always figured Teana was going out with Subaru."

"A lot of use thought that as well. The two do make a nice couple though," a soft nostalgic smile appeared on Signum's face.

"Everybody wants somebody to love," Garand told her in a musical tone. He snickered, "I once felt like that, I even got engaged."

Signum could not hide her surprise, "You? Engaged? She must have the patience of a saint."

Garand laughed, "Unfortunately I was a really poor judge of character back then."

"What happened?" Signum asked with peaked interest.

"Just before I left for my second deployment I proposed, she said yes." Garand put down his soldering tools and stretched his neck, "We planned to get married after I came back from the deployment. Then one month before I was supposed to return home I got a video in my email it was of my fiancé. At first I thought it was porn, until I saw the woman's face."

"It was your fiancé?" Signum began to feel guilty for requesting to hear the story.

"Yeah," he sighed and scratched at the scar on his face, "She looked right into the camera and with her usual warm smile she said, good bye." He turned around on the stool and leaned back against the workbench.

"That's," Signum stopped when she realized she did not know what to say about the story.

"It's not really that uncommon, though her method was a bit dramatic."

"What did you do?"

"Well I lost any interest I had in going home, so I greased some palms to keep me on deployment. I kept that up for a little over 2 years. Eventually I was forced back home. Things sort of went downhill after that. I Joined a PMC but that turned out not to suit me, so I tried freelance mercenary work and that went even worse, and now I'm here."

Signum was at a loss for words the story was not what she had been expecting. It took her a while to muster up the words to comment on his sorted tale, "Why would someone be so vindictive?"

Garand shrugged, "I don't know maybe my social ineptitude become too much for her, maybe she couldn't take being without me for months at a time. Honestly I stopped caring years ago." Garand looked over at Signum, "What about you? I'm sure you've got a story of your own?"

Signum looked up at the ceiling for a moment and a sad but fond smile crept across her face, "I do."

"Really?" he waited for her to start her story but she said nothing. Garand decided not to push her for the story, "Maybe you can tell me about it some time."

"Maybe," she told him as she lifted herself off the workbench. She was thankful that he did not try to force her to continue the conversation. Unfortunately, she now felt that all too familiar unease which she hated and was the source of her recent problems. With the conversation over, she had nothing to distract her.

"Want to stick around for a drink?" Garand asked

She was tempted, the thought of drowning her unpleasant feeling in alcohol made her think twice about her promise to Hayate to return home early. However, when she recalled that promise shook her head, angry with herself for considering the thought. Already, she had lied to her mistress. If she were to break the promise she made to Hayate she would never be able to forgive herself.

"No thank you," she told him, "I need to return early today."

"I see," Garand examined her expression, "You doing alright Sig?"

"I'm fine I just need a good night's sleep," Signum turned away from Garand concerned that he had noticed something more was amiss. As she, left Garand continued to observe her until she disappeared through the door.

Garand looked over the mess strung about the workbench. At first, he considered continuing his work, but he had noticed that something was off about Signum's behaviour, something he had observed in her numerous times before. He stood up and briskly walked to the door. For some time Signum's behaviour had been gnawing at him, but he had said nothing. Today however, he was determined to ascertain what was bothering her.

Standing next to her car, Signum rifled through her left pant pocket for her car keys. At the same time that she found them, she heard Garand calling out.

"Signum! Hang on a sec!" He jogged towards her joining her next to her car.

"Is something wrong?" She asked unlocking the car door.

"You sure you're doing okay? You've seemed a little off lately."

Signum reached for the car door, "I'm just worn out. I'll be fine once I get a decent night's sleep."

"I find that hard to believe." He told her folding his arms across his chest, "I've seen worn out and that is not what's bothering you."

"And what exactly leads you to think that?" Signum asked. She hoped that he would not be able to back up his accusation and would be forced to abandon his attempt to get the truth from her. After all, he had only lived a little over 30 years, as opposed to her one thousand how could he possibly match her insight and prove she was lying.

"Fever," he began, "Stomach pain, chest pain, quick to anger. In addition, dark circles under the eyes, a reliance on caffeine products and an inability to keep up with normal daily activities. You've never shown any of the symptoms so I find it difficult to believe you're simply worn out. I learned a long time ago how to spot things like exhaustion in people I work with."

Signum had been unprepared for such an articulated response. He was right she had none of the normal signs of exhaustion save one. He had not mentioned it but there was one final symptom, depression. Nevertheless, she was uncertain what would happen if she were to bring up the one symptom that most described what was wrong with her.

"Garand, I appreciate your concern but I don't think you're qualified to make a diagnosis." She reached for the cars door handle and tried to open it. Garand however forced it closed again.

"You do realize there are some problems you can't fix on your own right?" he seemed to be ignoring her statement.

Signum was rapidly becoming frustrated. Staying calm was fast becoming difficult. Garand had a knack for cracking, even breaking her calm exterior. It was too late to try to convince him she was fine and it was clear he would not drop the subject. It left her with a single choice. Garand was assertive, aggressive, and strait forward, a result of his long history with the military. The most effective way for Signum to respond was to use those same traits.

"Garand, you are not a doctor, unless you have a degree that I can verify, you have no right to give me a diagnosis. Whatever problems I have are mine and mine alone, I don't need someone who has lived barely half the life I have telling me what I'm doing wrong," Signum sternly replied. Opening her car door, she added, "Besides, anyone outside my family could not possibly understand my problems, especially not you."

Garand was left stunned for a moment. As he searched his brain for a rebuttal, Signum used the chance to push him aside and get into her car. Before he could say anything Signum Started the car and pulled away. When her car was out of sight, Garand sauntered back towards the hanger. When he reached the door, he kicked it with every bit of strength he had. He grumbled to himself like some angry old troll agitated by the fact he had failed in his attempt to assist Signum with her troubles.


	6. Chapter 6

Authors Note:

Sorry for the wait. I've been working like a dog likely. I spent a lot of time editing this chapter. It seemed like every time I thought I fixed everything I'd notice something else. I do have a Beta reader so that's a big help. Oh and Warp Ligia Obscura, the day I find your input naggy and critical is the day I start pulling my teeth out with pliers and feed them to my neighbours dog. I said at the start that I have no problem with constructive criticism. So thanks for your help ^_^

Signum pulled her car into the parking lot of the head quarters building. The memory of the previous evening left her unenthusiastic at the prospect of being at work. She had dodged Garand's questioning but she could not do so forever. She mused over what to do when she would eventually see him during the course of the day. A small sigh escaped her lips as she got out of her car. She could tell this would be a rough day. To add to her troubles Hayate had unexpectedly sprung a request for meeting that same night. Such a meeting likely meant further troubles were coming her way. Shutting her car door, she proceeded into Headquarters.

"Signum?" Agito asked.

She had nearly forgotten that her miniature partner was with her, "Yes?"

"You don't think it's bad news do you?"

"It's a possibility." Signum restrained the need to sigh again.

Making their way to the third floor then down the hallway, Signum and Agito arrived at Hayate's office. It was out of the ordinary for a commanding officers office not to be in the same building as their unit. The old hanger however, had little office space. This was a result of renovations to create high security storage and machine shops for the sake of the project. However, Hayate never seemed to mind this. She frequently walked down the hanger line to check up on how things were progressing. Sometimes, it seemed she made such visits simply to put off doing paper work. Signum knocked twice on the door. Hayate bid her, enter, and the door slid open. Inside was a small modest office much smaller than the one she had at Section 6. It did however, have just enough room for a coffee table and two small sofas. Signum marched to the front of Hayate's desk, snapped to attention and saluted.

"Sorry for the short notice Signum."

"It's fine, what was it you needed to tell me?"

Hayate made a few keystrokes on her terminal bringing up a report on the murder Signum had witnessed during the bombings. "You remember this right? I need you to investigate a matter concerning the incident."

"This is in regards to the smoke canister found at the scene, correct?"

Hayate nodded.

"Shouldn't TIA be doing that? Or the Enforcers?"

Hayate clasped her hands and placed them on her desk, "According to the TSAB Intelligence Agency and Enforcer HQ no such item was logged into evidence." Hayate made a few more keystrokes into her terminal and a new screen appeared before Signum with a different report on it. It regarded the two men who had tried to acquire Vivio, "Skip to page four," she instructed. Signum scrolled down to the appropriate page. As she continued to read, she noticed a single missing detail. According to the report, neither man had been armed. It was a clear discrepancy from what Garand had told her. The concern on Signum's face was a clear indication to Hayate that she understood what she was going to ask of her, "For the moment though, the gas grenades are my greatest concern so focus on that for now."

"Does this mean I will be removed from my post with NEDS?" she asked slightly hopeful.

"No," Hayate leaned back in her chair, "This needs to be done quietly no one can know your performing an investigation into this mater. If I were to take you off the project without proper cause it could raise suspicion"

Signum looked over at Agito who was hovering next to her. "You can keep quiet about this can't you?"

Agito expression changed to a rarely seen serious one, "Of course."

"Is anyone else aware of this investigation?" Signum asked.

"Garand, you'll need his skills and accesses privileges. No one else outside this office can know what's happening."

"Does that mean I'll be updating you directly?" Hayate shook her head.

"No, I've made arrangements for a secure method you can use to update me. Garand has the details."

"Is there anything else I need to know?"

Hayate looked up at her knight with a troubled smile, "Just remember what we talked about at the range."

Signum chose to walk to the NEDS hanger rather than drive. Allowing herself time to process her instructions. Given the events during the JS incident, it was clear that elements within TSAB supported unsavoury agenda's. The investigation Signum found herself tasked with, was in all likely hood, connected to such agenda's. However, something bothered her. Why would Hayate have told Garand? She indicated that she would need his security clearance but that was all she should have needed. If she simply asked to see the Trident Industries facility, Garand would have happily given her the grand tour without a second thought. He should not have any need to be involved in the investigation. Even more concerning were the, skills, she referred to. The man on the outset seemed like any other long time soldier. The exact skills Hayate was referring escaped her.

"Signum?" Agito called

"Yes?" she asked pulling away from her thoughts.

"What did you and Hayate talk about at the range?"

Signum smiled softly, "Trust."

When they reached the hanger, they found the large front doors open part way with an old SUV parked out front. As Signum and Agito approached it, they spotted Garand carrying a Saiga-12 shotgun walking out of the hanger. Signum hesitated for a moment. It was unlikely Garand had decided to give up on the subject of yesterday's argument. For a moment, she almost considered turning around and going back the way she came.

Signum quickly forced the idea of such an unprofessional act out of her mind, "That seems excessive for a simple investigation, are you expecting a fight?"

Stopping at the vehicle Garand ran through a functional check of the weapon while he answered, "I always expect a fight Sig." Finishing his, check he placed the weapon in a metal create bolted into the back of the SUV. Turning around he reached into his pocket, "I've got a present for you." He told her with a nonchalant grin.

"What is it?" Signum asked with concern.

Garand removed a small rectangular key chain with a sword engraved onto it, "A disposable device, same as the ones used by TIA. I've uploaded your data from the last time Laevatein was in for maintenance. The barrier jacket is nothing fancy but it'll get the job done."

Signum took the device from him, "Why would I need this?"

Garand closed the tailgate of the SUV, "Plausible denial. This mission is supposed to stay secret and your usual equipment stands out too much. This will fix that."

Signum took a second look at Garand. Instead of his uniform, he wore an old pair of blue jeans and a olive drab hooded sweater, "What's going on Garand?" she asked with concern placing the device in her pocket.

Garand stepped closer to her, nearly toe to toe. He leaned towards her, bringing his lips next to her ear. Close enough for her to feel his breath on her cheek as he spoke, "That's what we're going to find out. One way or another," he then patted her shoulder and walked past her.

"Hey don't get so close to Signum!" Agito scowled.

"What're you going to do about it? Torch my head again?"

Agito leered at him, "It's tempting."

Garand opened the driver side door, "Signum, come on," As Garand started the engine, Signum climbed into the passenger seat.

The morning rush had passed and it was easy going along the high way. All was not well however. Neither one had spoken a word to each other since they left. The feelings from the previous night's conversation still lingered in their minds.

"What's with you two?" Agito inquired. The tinny figure looked up at Signum from the dashboard with concern, "Signum?"

"Adult stuff," Garand told her with a grin, "You're too young to understand."

Agito started to boil over as her imagination carried wild idea's into her head, "What did you do to Signum!" she was fully prepared to turn the inside of the vehicle into an inferno, should he give an unsatisfactory answer.

"Agito stop. It's fine, nothing happened," Signum assured her holding out her hand in a, stop gesture.

"We just had a talk, speaking of which." He glanced briefly at Signum, "I'll drop the subject on two conditions. First, if this becomes an issue and you endanger yourself or anyone else, I'll have you removed from the program on the spot," he glanced over at her again, "And I will also tell Hayate what I know about your behaviour."

"And the second?" she asked with caution.

"Open the glove box. There should be three business cards inside," Signum did as she was asked. Each card had the information for a different psychiatric doctor, "Pick one and go for a consultation after that what happens is your business, alright?"

"Very well, but you will keep up your end of the bargain," she answered sternly.

"Affirmative," he replied, satisfied. There was long uncomfortable pause between the three of them until Garand broke the silence, "So, have you heard the one about the wood chipper and the priest?"

"Yes," Signum replied placing her hand over her face and shaking her head, "And I really don't want to hear it again." She told him with a chuckle.

"What's going on?" Agito pouted.

"I will explain later Agito," Signum told her. With the mood now lightened. Garand turned on the stereo then skipped through several songs before finding the one he wanted. The beat of stomping feet and clapping hands started the song. Then a voice with a Texas accent began singing to the beat. Garand tapped the steering wheel in sync to the sound.

"I haven't heard this one before," Signum noted.

"It's Johnny Cash; the song is called Run On."

Signum reclined into her seat and folded her arms. Lazily, she watched the city flow past the window as the song filled the cab. As the song played out a small smile crept across her cheeks. Despite his truckload of faults, somehow Garand always seemed to find a way to improve her mood. Though he was short lived when compared to her, he had a strange insight and an uncanny ability to learn and adapt to situations. These traits made up for drastic deference in their ages. Despite how radically different he was from the rest of her friends. She often found herself glad to have met such an interesting individual. Even though he was an abrasive jerk at times, he was still the nicest jerk she had ever met.

After passing a security check at the gate, Garand pulled his truck into the main parking lot of the Trident Industries Research and Development facility. The three of them got out of the truck. Before proceeding further, Garand stopped and handed a security pass to Signum. Taking it, she examined the information on it. The ID had her picture and the Trident Industries logo plastered on it. The name however read Jeanne d'Arc.

"A fake ID?" she inquired.

"Of course, Signum is never supposed to have been here."

"What does Ms. d'Arc do?" she asked raising an eyebrow.

"You're here as a rep from TSAB for a surprise security inspection."

Garand led them into the main entrance. Inside the spacious reception area was a large desk. Behind it, two young women directed visitors under the watchful eye of a pair of armed mages. Each wearing a grey Barrier Jacket trimmed with red. As they passed the reception desk, Garand called out to the two women.

"Aya, Sharon! How's it going?" One of the women went red and refused to acknowledge his call. The other smiled and wave back. "We should grab a drink again some time!"

"Sure! I'll make sure to bring Sharon." The friendlier of the two women answered.

Continuing on Signum briefly wondered why the other woman at the desk had seemed so embarrassed. She imagined that there was quite the story behind her flushed red face, one that more than likely involved Garands enthusiastic drunkenness.

Approaching a pair of security doors, they stopped. One at a time, they both placed their palms on a scanner mounted on the wall next to the doors. Garand led Signum and Agito through the winding maze like complex. Eventually, they arrived at a small office with a window that looked out into a warehouse. After entering, Signum made certain to close the door behind them. Garand sat down at the lone terminal set up in the room.

"We can access shipping manifests, current stock piles, requisition requests and other related information from here." Garand entered his user ID and password then got up from the chair, "You're probably better at snooping for evidence then me so have at er."

Signum sat down in the chair, "Can I access manufacturing records as well?"

"Yeah," Garand touched a folder icon on the screen and information related to manufacturing appeared on the screen, "Have a theory already?"

"Yes I do," she told him systematically going through the related files. Comparing the storage records with the manufacturing data, she hoped to find an excess of manufactured grenades and a corresponding lack in the current stock. As she examined the data, Garand walked over to the window and checked his watch then out into the warehouse.

Signum continued to sift through the information. According to the computer, every smoke canister was accounted for with no apparent discrepancies. She took a moment to think on other ways the canister could have ended up in the hands of her assailant, "Is there any way the plans for the manufacture of these smoke grenades could have been leaked?" she asked

"Maybe, I suppose it's a possibility," Garand turned around, "But these aren't like the smoke grenades from earth you can't make them with a child's chemistry set. You need facilities capable of manufacturing cartridges. That or they would need someone like Shamal who can hand load carts." He told her suggestively.

Signum shook her head, "It takes a lot of skill to hand load a cartridge, a skill unique to Belkan mages. One mistake and the cartridge will explode." She folded her arms.

"Can't Takamachi and Harlowen make carts?"

"They can but the quality is far lower than the ones Shamal or TSAB can create."

"Well if they can't make carts, there's no way to make this type of fast deploying smoke. Maybe there's another old Belkan mage like Shamal running around?"

"That's also unlikely." Signum stared at the data on the screen, "It has to have come from here or a similar facility."

"Check the quantities of the components for the grenades." Garand suggested.

Signum touched a series of icons until it brought up the list of chemicals currently in stock. According to the data, nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Only a small quantity of the necessary components was on hand. Checking through the update history the numbers stayed relatively consistent. Signum felt like it was simply another dead end. Garand however had a second idea.

"Bring up the shipping reports. I have an idea."

Again, Signum touched a series of icons this time bring up information on shipments in and out of the facility over the past 5 months. "I don't see anything out of the ordinary. The quantities all match with the stock data."

"Not quite," Garand pointed to one instance were nearly quadruple the necessary components had be received.

"But they were returned the next day. It was most likely a shipping mistake," Signum paused realizing something was not quite right. She re examined the data. Several times a month, at random intervals, the facility received incorrect amounts of materials. Then sent the excess back the next day, "This many shipping errors," she droned off into thought.

"It's an old trick used by arms manufacturers to sell ammo and guns illegally. Though, here it's a new trick." Garand walked back to the window, "They arrange over shipments of the materials. Then falsify paper work saying the excess was returned."

"And then they can manufacture more gas grenades with no one the wiser. Someone must come in after hours to assemble the grenades in order to go unnoticed." Signum thought for a moment, "We need to find the excess."

"And that is why we're here." Garand checked his watch for a second time. Signum's gut was telling her there was something off. It seemed as if Garand already knew all this. In addition, when he checked his watch he seemed slightly impatient. For the time being, she decided it would be best to leave the matter be, "I have nearly full access to this place so tell me where you want to go and I'll take you there."

"Where do they keep the containers?" she asked standing up.

"In there." He pointed through the window.

Garand led them out of the office to another set of security doors. Passing through them, they found themselves on the warehouse floor. The group split up searching the rows of shelving for the components. Agito called out a short time later.

"Over here!" she told them. Signum quickly followed her voice, "See right here!" she told her proudly pointing at a shelf with several blue plastic barrels on it.

Signum counted the number of containers. There were indeed more than what was stated in the records, but at the same time it was less than overage should have been.

"There's less here then there should be."

"They must have already used some of it." Garand suggested as he approached her. Again, she noticed him glance at his watch, "So what now?"

"Where do they store the empty containers?"

Garand pointed to an area next to the loading door, "Right there."

Next to the door were black steel and blue plastic drums. Signum opened two barrels at random but found nothing. On her third try, she found one of the steel drums filled with packing material. On a hunch, she reached into the drum. Halfway down she was able to grab something. What she pulled out was a familiar green cylinder clearly labelled.

"M-18 smoke white" she read.

The security door made a 'clunk' as it was unlocked. Signum quickly put the grenade back then replaced the lid of the drum. They dashed out of sight. Concealing themselves behind several, large wooden creates. Observing the loading dock, they watched as two employees opened the door and guided a delivery truck up to the open door. The men wasted no time, quickly loading the barrels into the truck. Signum was tempted for a moment to confront them but she had not come here to apprehend a group of gofers. Waiting for the right moment Signum carefully led Garand back through the door. Once in the hall they briskly made their way towards the main entrance and out through the front door.

"Garand, give me the keys. I'll drive."

Garand tossed his keys to her, "You got it."

"Agito," Signum began, "I need you to get on to that truck so we can track it unnoticed."

"Alright." She acknowledged.

"Agito, be careful." Signum added with concern. Agito nodded and flew off towards the loading dock.

It was not long before the plain white truck drove out of the parking lot with Agito standing on the rear bumper. Guided by her steady stream of directions, Signum let the truck stay well ahead of them relying entirely on Agito for direction. It led them on a winding path through the city. A course likely intended to lose any would be tails. Unfortunately, for them, such measures were useless when someone is giving direction from the back of their truck. After over an hour of driving, the white transport truck turned east out of the city onto the high way. Half an hour later, it turned off the road heading for an abandoned airstrip surrounded with tall barbwire fences. Before reaching the airstrip, Signum took a side road and circled around to the opposite side of the airfield. After parking the SUV in a ditch outside the fence line, they exited the vehicle.

Garand rushed to the rear and opened the tailgate. Then, started pulling out his equipment, "What's the plan?" he asked putting on his plate carrier, "I'd rather not just observe them. Not when they got barrels full of our ordinance."

Signum thought for a moment. She had been a part of many military operations both during the Belkan war and in the service of TSAB. However, her experience with covert operations was extremely limited. She and the book of darkness were used in a manner akin to a battle ship and its escort frigates. The book's master would fire barrages off long-range artillery blasts while the knights protected the master and provided support. In addition, just as a naval battle group, when they moved on the battlefield it was easily noticed. This was different though, the purpose of this mission was not the elimination of an enemy. Rather it was the acquisition of intelligence without being exposed. She looked over at Garand. He had finished donning his plate carrier and was now pulling a one whole balaclava over his face and topping it off with a black ball cap and tactical ear defenders. She began to surmise that it was because of this lack of experience that Hayate had included Garand in this mission.

"What would you suggest?" she probed.

"Well that depends," Garand keyed his mike attached to his ear defenders, "Agito, is there an aircraft in the hanger?"

"Yeah there's a really big plane inside. They're loading the drums into it."

Garand looked over at Signum, "Our most expedient method is to storm the place and get the flight information from the aircraft's cockpit. We should also try to capture the plane and the ordinance. Failing that we should destroy it."

Signum thought for a moment. Under normal circumstances, she would have called for assistance and arrested every one inside, or continued to observe and see where the aircraft went after takeoff. She looked off towards the hangers. Hayate's request was to determine how an experimental piece of equipment had made it in to inappropriate hands. Considering the situation things like evidence and the capture of personnel were not feasible in the normal sense. They had a single goal and that was to find out who was the mastermind behind this leak and plug it appropriately.

"We'll storm the hanger." She decided, "I will take the front, Garand you take the rear, Agito will sneak into the aircraft and retrieve the flight data once the fighting starts."

"Roger," Garand responded cocking his Saiga-12, "What do we do about the plane and gas grenades?"

Signum considered it for a moment, "We'll retrieve them."

"Alright then!" he said with an excited smile punching his palm, "We got ourselves a plan. By the way, make sure you use that device I gave your earlier."

Signum pulled the devise from her pocket and ran her thumb across its surface. She let an uneasy sigh pass her lips, "Set up."

The devise promptly activated and deployed a Barrier Jacket. When activated the Jacket was un extraordinary, consisting of black jeans, an olive drab wool sweater, boots, a grey vest with a hood that covered her head and an olive drab scarf around her face. In her hand was a sword. One part revolver one part Bowie Knife, its hilt was angled down slightly to create a great cutting force near the end of the blade. Signum swung at the air with the sword.

"The balance feels like Laevatein. It seems to be a little heavier though," she noted.

"It has the same center of balance. It's not as durable as yours and doesn't have alternate modes but I promise you it will get the job done just fine. The control system isn't vocal by the way, it interfaces with your com's so just think of the name of the attack you want to use rather than say it."

"I can't believe you built this in a single night."

"I didn't, honestly I already had the blank device, all I had to do was load the parameters and tweak the settings."

Signum re-examined the weapon in her hand. Programming a blank device was no simple task. Normally it would take an amateur days to complete the process. Garand however, with no experience managed it in a single night. She found herself at a loss as to whether she should be impressed or suspicious. For the time being however, such thoughts were secondary, there was a mission to be carried out.


	7. Chapter 7

Author's Note:

Unfortunately, I have lost my beta reader. -_-

I guess she couldn't take my horrible grammar skills any more, that and college courses keep her busy. _

So, if any one wants to volunteer to beta read for me that would be great. I can pay you in soup and blood of the innocent!

Any way enjoy this new chapter.

It did not take long for Garand to get into position. In just a few minute's he had made his way past the fence line, by way of a large hole beneath it. Cautiously, he proceeded to the back of the hanger. Lining the rear wall was a row of windows looking into a set of offices. Further observations found a nearby door left unsecured. This gave him a point of entry. After checking through an adjacent window for traps and personnel, he readied his 1911 pistol, screwing a suppressor into place. Cautiously, he pulled the door open and moved inside. Progressing into the room, he quickly scanned the area with the barrel of the pistol. After confirming it was clear, he proceeded towards the hallway. He could hear voices coming from the far end. Moving to the wall next to the door, he used a small mirror from his pocket and checked the hall. Two men passed through the hall into the hanger and a third turned towards the room Garand was in. Withdrawing the mirror, he then holstered his pistol. The footsteps were casual with no caution. It was unlikely he had been noticed. Garand took the trench knife from the back of his belt. Slowly the footsteps closed in. A single man emerged from the hall into the room, still unaware of Garand's presence.

In a fast and fluidic motion, Garand grabbed the man from behind. With one hand, he covered the man's mouth and jarred his head back. The man thrashed violently trying to free himself. Garand drove the knife through the side of the man's neck then forced it out through the front severing both arteries along with his trachea. The man continued to struggle only for a few more seconds until he finally bled out. When his struggling ceased, Garand carefully placed the body on the ground just out of sight. Then, returned his knife to its scabbard. Leaving the room, he quietly closed the door and drew his pistol. There were two doors down the hall to his right and one on the left. The furthest of these was where the three men had come from. Checking the first room, he found no one inside. As he neared the second room, he checked across the hall to a set of double doors on the other side of which was the hanger. Turning his attention back to the doorway on his right he could hear the voices of at least two people.

He burst directly into the room and found two men and a woman sitting around a table. Starting with the woman who had a clear line of sight on him he fired two regular slugs into her chest, the noise of the weapon muffled to a dull thump thanks to the suppressor. Next, he aimed the weapon at the man who had his right side presented to him. Again, he fired to shots and the man rolled out of his chair. The last of the three, who had his back to Garand, overcame the initial surprise of the attack and tried to stand and engage him. However, it was too late. In too poor a position to counter attack from, the man could not overcome the momentum of the surprise attack. Garand fired two rounds and the man collapsed forward onto the table. Cautiously he entered the room. Approaching the woman's body, he found a dog tag type device dangling from her neck. It was the same type issued by the army. Examining the man whom he had shot in the back, he found he was carrying a nine-millimetre pistol in a belt holster. Both items indicated an access to military hard ware. Garand made a mental not of this point and proceeded on.

The man he had shot in the side had begun dragging himself across the floor blood foaming from his mouth as he tried to call for help. As Garand left, he fired a single round into the man's head. Approaching the door, he changed the magazines in his pistol. Keying his mike twice, indicated to Signum and Agito he was ready and in position. As he waited patiently for Signum's response, he swapped his pistol for his Saiga-12. Garand took a moment to peer through the window in the door. On the other side, he could see at least twelve people. Once the fighting commenced he would focus on the personnel closest to him and work his way towards the aircraft on the left side of the hanger.

An explosion roared to life at the front of the hanger. Signum had chosen to be flashy and draw most of the attention. Attacking in such a manner meant more personnel would respond to the front but there was an underling reason for her flashiness. Garand's weapons were not intended to subdue an enemy. They were intended to kill. From his point of view, it was easy to see Signum was trying to limit the number of deaths by drawing as many personnel to her as possible. Since she could use magic, it made her far better at avoiding the deaths of her opponents.

The shouting quickly began as the people inside scurried to determine the cause. Using the chaos Garand flung open the door and targeted a man near the door about to sprint off to investigate the explosion. He fired a single round from his shotgun. A spray of shot plumed forward from the weapon ripping into the man's back in a dinner plated sized grouping. The sound of the shot drew the attention of those nearby. On his right were three men holding pistols on his left another with a shotgun. Beyond them, three mages near the center of the hanger had turned away from the blast reacting to the sound of the gunshot.

Garand began by firing on the man with the shotgun. He tapped the trigger twice. Since his target was near the maximum range of his weapon, he had to counter that by throwing more lead down range. His target fell to the ground. Whipping around to face the three men wielding pistols he fired three shots while moving for cover behind a forklift. One of his shots neutralized the man in the center of the group of three. Once he was behind the forklift, he fired his last round blind over the forklift. Pistol rounds ricocheted off the forklift as he quickly changed magazines opting for AMF slugs instead of shot.

The two remaining men momentarily held their fire waiting for Garand to reappear from behind his cover. Dropping onto his side, Garand returned fire, keeping most of his body protected by the forklift. His two rounds missed their mark as the men dove for cover. Garand observed and waited for them to show themselves.

One of them leaned out from behind a crate and fired his pistol at Granad's head. The round went high and missed his head by a few centimetres smashing into the Forklift. Garand took the chance to return fire before the man could correct is point of aim. Squeezing the trigger, the three-inch slug leapt from the barrel of his weapon. Smashing through his head, it tore a fist size hole in his cranium. Checking his right he saw the three mages circling around behind him. Bringing his weapon to bare on them he double tapped the trigger. Two slugs punched though the trailing mages Barrier Jacket, but did not exit. The slugs lost enough velocity from passing through the jacket to keep them from going clean trough. The result was two massive balls of lead ricocheting inside the mages jacket pulverizing his internal organs into a fine paste.

Returning his attention to the other shooter he discovered he was attempting to advance on him while firing. Garand almost felt sorry for him but he was not the type to waist an opportunity. Leaning around his cover, he fired a round into the man's chest dropping him to the floor. Garand got back on his feet and moved towards the aircraft attempting to relocate before the mages could target him.

A blast of energy streaked towards Garand before he could make it to cover. Millimetres from striking him the blast disintegrated into sparks of orange light scattering harmlessly in all directions. Garand promptly returned fire. The second mage cast a shield to protect himself and his partner. The three-inch slug however had no intention of stopping for a simple shield spell. Passing thought the shield it struck his attacker in his shoulder knocking him to the floor. The second mage realizing the danger of Garand's weapon ducked behind a large generator trailer.

The mage who had taken the blast from Garand's Saiga was gritting his teeth stumbling onto his feet, trying to make his way to cover. Garand fired two more rounds the first failed to penetrate the second was successful and passed into his left lung. Not waiting for the other mage to show himself, Garand changed locations, moving to a set of crates. Taking the chance, he loaded a fresh magazine into his weapon and placed the empty one into his drop pouch.

The hairs on his neck suddenly stood on end. Garand looked up and saw the mage from earlier hovering above him, two spheres of yellow light suspended beside him. Garand dove out of the way. Bolts of lightning cracked the air and struck the place he had been moments before. The supper heated bolts of lightning caused the concrete to explode from the sudden and extreme change in temperature. Lying on his back Garand retaliated by firing three rounds at the mage.

The mage however was prepared and had erected a dual layer shield. The shield stopped the first two rounds but weakened enough for the third to make it through. The last slug struck the mage in the right side of the chest destroying part of his Barrier Jacket but not penetrating. The mage reeled back from the force of the impact, clutching the spot where the round had struck him. Garand pulled a grenade from his plate carrier and pulled the pin. Releasing the spoon he waited two seconds then hurled it towards the mage. The mage immediately deployed a shield. As the grenade exploded with a bang and a small puff of grey smoke Garand lunged under the mage and aimed his weapon up at his feet. He tapped the trigger four times. The first shot destroyed the mages left foot the second missed the third smashed his right shoulder and the last broke through his Barrier Jacket at the groin. The mage went limp and doubled over, crashing to the ground. Garand checked his surroundings. There appeared to be no further hostels in his vicinity. He could hear Signum still fighting at the front of the hanger. Not wanting to waste time, he decided to proceed into the large transport aircraft while Signum occupied the remaining hostels.


	8. Chapter 8

Authors note:

Greetings again all. I'm pretty happy with the improvment in my writing skills thus far but one thing I'd like an opinion on is my style. Is it wordy, bland, or perhaps technical, maybe it's fine as is? Please post your thoughts on it if you have any. Thanks as always every one enjoy.

Signum had concealed herself behind a small out building across from the front of the hanger. She carefully observed the building and its surroundings. Taking stock of the personnel and equipment in the area, she waited for the signal to begin. Her device relayed a double click sound into her mind letting her know that Garand was ready. She re-examined the area in front of hanger. Off to the right of the main doors was another small out building. This building however had a warning placard on its side indicating flammable materials within.

Deciding on a course of action, she cautiously made her way towards the second out building using a drainage ditch to stay out of sight. Coming up behind the building, she drew back her sword.

"Load cartridge," she instructed. The weapon rotated a single cartridge into position and activated it. Sending a telepathic signal to the device, she indicated the attack she intended to use, Shiden Issen. Intense flames burst up from the hilt of the weapon consuming the length of the blade. She made a dash forward slashing the side of the building easily cutting through the wall. The magic flames instantly consumed the materials inside. The building swelled from the expanding gasses.

No longer able to contain the force of the fire within, the structure exploded violently, casting a massive yellow and orange fireball into the sky. The individuals in the hanger hastened to respond to the explosion. As they rushed from the hanger, they found Signum waiting for them. Three of the first responders deployed barrier jackets. Two of them were Mid-Childa style mages equipped with standard mid range staffs. The third materialized a halberd and from his stance, he appeared to use Belkan style arts.

The man with the halberd lunged at Signum thrusting his weapon towards her. Simultaneously, the two Mid style mages opened fire using a rapid succession of blasts to limit her side-to-side movement. It was a sound tactic, simple yet effective. While it did restrict her movement, it was of little consequence to Signum. The man with the halberd continuously drove his weapon forward while Signum took a few back steps to allow the man think he had the upper hand. Then in a sudden, graceful swaying motion, she twisted her torso to the right, keeping her sword low and arms close to her sides. The halberd blew past her and she lunged forward. She snapped her blade upwards in a quick powerful motion. Pouring magical energy into the swords blade, she cut through his barrier jacket and into his flesh. The magic energy she had placed into her weapon flowed into the man's body overloading his nervous system and disrupting his ability to use his linker core, resulting in unconsciousness. This was the basis of non-lethal magic combat. Flashy seemingly over powered attacks, simple slashes with a sword, long-range blasts, each type of attack had the same basic intent. Wear down the enemy, break through their defence and inflict a massive but non-lethal shock to the central nervous system to force unconsciousness. Depending on the skill and power of the mages, this was possible in an instant or in the case of more evenly matched mages over a more drawn out battle.

The man fell backwards dropping his weapon no longer able to fight. As Signum continued to advance, the two mages who had been supporting the first attempted targeting her directly. Signum dodged their shots as she closed the distance. The moment her sword was in range, she took two powerful swings knocking the two mages aside leavening them incapacitated. She took a brief pause to reassess her enemies. As soon as she had engaged the first three, over a dozen others poured out of the hanger to mount a counter attack. While there was an obvious sense of urgency in their response, the counter attack was not disorganized. It was well disciplined and correctly executed. It was a clear sign that these people were not some mere rouge group. They had definite training and skill.

Mixed in among the mages that responded she noticed that some of them were wielding pistols and shot guns. She was surprised it was the kind of hardware normally only available to the military. Taking a second look she also noticed the mages all wore TSAB issued Barrier Jackets. It was disconcerting. She had her doubts about any of them actually having connections to TSAB but it was still somewhat troubling.

Three of the melee specialists rushed the knight head on while the others took up positions forming an arc in front of her. The group that charged forward executed their attack with impressive teamwork. Each was aware of the others angle of attack and movement creating few openings. However, their timing was off. Signum swayed to the right avoiding the first attacker. As he blew past her, she slashed at his torso, cutting through his Barrier Jacket and into the skin of his abdomen. When the other two tried to compensate for the loss of one of their number an opening presented its self. Signum darted forward, ducking low. She swung her blade at the legs of one of the men as she streaked past them. The man she struck tumbled to the ground.

Pivoting on her leading foot she twirled around and made a single cross cut as if trying to cut the second man in two. The blade tore through the barrier jacket ripping open a large wound in his back. The man who tumbled to the ground attempted to get back onto his feet but found himself immediately targeted by Sigunm. She quickly carved a wound into his chest as he tried to turn and face her. Before he could fall to the ground for a second time, Signum grabbed his wrist then flung him towards his comrades. As the mans unconscious body flew forward Signum followed closely after it using it to dissuade the mid range mages from attacking. With the distance to the mages eliminated, she activated another cartridge. In an instant, she became a mere blur in the eyes of her opponents. Slashing and striking she left brief flickers of flame along the gouges in their Barrier Jackets. She danced her way through their numbers with efficient grace. A style and skill envied by anyone who had ever held a sword. Her enemies fell like mere paper dolls unable to keep up with her skill in close quarters.

As the last enemy fell, a deep silence came over the hanger and flight line. She felt the area was now secure. Walking over to one of the attackers, she crouched down and picked up the pistol that was lying next to him. Firearms had never been something she was terribly interested in but Garand had made certain to teach her a working understanding of them. Checking the side of the weapon, she saw the serial number had been filed down. Looking at the pistols grip, she located the magazine release and pushed it with her thumb. The magazine slid out of the pistol and into her hand. Then using her thumb and forefinger, she pulled back the pistols slide. An unused round jumped out of the breach and dropped to the ground.

Signum picked up the round. Examining the base of the cartridge, she found significant information. The bottom of the round had been stamped '9mm' accompanied by a circle with an 'X' inside it. This mark indicated that this nine millimetre round, was an AMF round. This was made more troubling by the fact that this calibre had been rejected as a candidate for use in project Sierra. It had been ruled out due to its lack of stopping power and as a result, all the rounds and manufacturing equipment should have been destroyed. She placed the pistol and magazine into a drop pouch on the back of her belt.

Signum proceeded into the hanger just in time to see Garand jog into the transport. Waiting on the hanger floor, she kept watch for any signs of additional combatants. As she waited, she noticed the bodies of the individuals Garand had killed. For a moment it made her wonder if, it would have been better to come alone. If she had, these men might not have died.

Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted Garand bolt back out of the aircraft in a mad sprint. She was just about to inquire why he was in such a hurry when a massive and powerful blast of orange magical energy shot out of the rear hatch of the plane. Garand managed to avoid the blast, but with nothing to stop it, the attack tore through the rear wall of the hanger leaving an impressive hole. Signum redirected her attention to the aircrafts rear hatch. A pair of heavy footsteps stomped down the loading ramp. What emerged surprised her.

Standing on the edge of the loading ramp, carrying their staves like chainsaws, appeared a pair of heavy equipment mages. Their Barrier Jackets were thick, heavy and bulky. The equipment worn by the mages resembled the body armour worn by bomb disposal technicians on Earth. The only difference was the mages wore heavy gloves and a more streamline helmet that completely concealed their faces. Signum had seen this type of mage and Barrier Jacket before. They were usually employed as bomb disposal techs, disaster search and rescue, and various other hazardous missions. Seeing them in combat was unusual and as such, she had never faced one in a combat before. Signum drew her sword back reading her first attack.


	9. Chapter 9

Authors note: I tried something a little different with this chapter it's two separate fights happening at the same time. Now I was told that I should use "Sigh Post Langue" such as, 'At the same time,' 'elsewhere', and 'in the mean time'. When I tried doing so, it sounded a little too repetitive. So I tried doing it a different way. Let me know what you think.

Signum rushed the closer of the two mages. Shifting her blade to a thrusting position, she drove her weapon forward. Then, at an alarming speed, the mage turned to face her. He drove his two pronged staff towards her sword driving its tip down into the ground. Quickly, the heavy mage swung his armoured fist at Signum's head. Responding to the attack, she back stepped pulling her sword free and putting some distance between them. Something was off she could feel it. A mage this heavily armoured should have trouble making swift precise movements. Yet somehow, he had been able to rapidly respond to her attack and pin her sword. He was even able to counter. For the time being, she decided to face this enemy as she would a Belkan mage, rather than a Mid style.

The second heavy mage ignored Signum and proceeded towards Garand. Popping up from behind a stack of crates, Garand fired three slugs into the mages chest. The large man staggered from the impact but seemed unharmed. Raising his staff the mage returned the attack. A sphere of bluish light formed at its tip. Garand quickly sprinted away from his cover but the mage tracked him with the end of his staff, leading him just a little. The mage released the sphere of energy. As it streaked towards Garand, it ploughed its way through every object in its path. Garand quickly tried to reverse direction but the sphere had become too large. The moment before the sphere collided with him, his body armour reacted. The blast instantly disintegrated, showering the area in orange sparks of light.

Signum dodged left and right, reclosing the distance to her opponent as he fired small blasts of energy in rapid succession. She prepared to make another thrusting attack, but just before fully committing to the strike, she altered it. Snapping her blade up into a high stance, she swung it down and across her body. The sword collided with the man's side knocking him off his feet and sending him sliding across the floor. After coming to a full stop the mage slowly got back onto his feet. Renewing his fighting stance the mage held out his hand and with a single finger out stretched. He gestured for her to try again. The man's provocation caused Signum to let an exasperated sigh escape her lips. She wondered if he actually believed she would be provoked by such antics. When Signum did not advance towards her opponent, he pointed his staff at her. In an instant, a small but very powerful ball of energy shot forward from his weapon. Unconcerned Signum sidestepped behind a large crate, but it was not to take cover. With a swift and powerful kick, Signum drove the sole over her boot into the back of the crate sending it flying towards the ball of energy. As the crate crashed into the sphere, the spell detonated obliterating the crate in a bright flash.

The mage assaulting Garand switched to using smaller, faster moving projectiles, bombarding him with a near continuous string of attacks. Using the equipment scattered in the hanger Garand darted from cover to cover until the plane was at his back and the mage was in front of him. The heavy equipment mage quickly ceased fire not wanting to damage the aircraft. Garand took the chance and opened fire on the mage. Each slug slammed into his Barrier Jacket forcing the mage to move to cover. Quickly removing a flash bang from his plate carrier, he pulled the pin then lobbed it high into the air. Garand then leaned up and over his cover and fired again at the mage, keeping him from noticing the flash bang descending towards him.

The mage battling against Signum lost track of the sword knight in the explosion. Anticipating an attack from behind the mage quickly turn on his heals a full one hundred and eighty degrees. Poised to counter whatever attack she had planed he readied himself, but there was nothing behind him. A sudden feeling of confusion washed over him. It was a state of mind easily taken advantage of by Signum. She had never tried to get behind him the sword knight had been in front of him from the start. His error in judgment had exposed his back to the knight. Before the mage could fully realize this, Signum assaulted him. Pouring all her augmented strength into her arms, she braced her legs and drew back her blade. With bone crushing force, she swung her sword slamming him squarely in his back, launching him into the air. She had determined any attempt to pierce his amour would be a waste of time. Instead, she intended to use sheer kinetic force to pulverise his body and inflict massive amounts of blunt force trauma. With powerful enough impacts armour or not the force of her blows would transfer through the armour inflicting damage on the mage within.

The mage squaring off against Garand continued to hold position behind his cover. Just as he was about to try and flank Garand, a green cylinder passed in front of his face. Before he could react to the new development, the cylinder detonated in a blinding flash and deafening bang. A bright sheet of white clouded the mages vision and an intense ringing drowned out all sound. He thrashed about blindly, letting out a long string of loud curses. Garand rushed out from cover. Zigzagging between assortments of equipment spread out across the hanger floor. He leaped up on top of the crate the mage was using for cover. Garand pointed the barrel of his weapon at the disoriented mage. At a distance of only two feet, he opened fire.

Signum's opponent righted himself mid air. Though he lacked the ability to fly, he had enough control over his momentum to point his staff at the ground. He let lose a barrage of powerful blasts of magical energy that rained down on the sword knight decimating everything around her. However, she had anticipated this and the attack was blocked by a magic shield. Sending all her magic into her legs, she launched herself into the air. She streaked pasted the armoured mage towards the ceiling. Flipping herself around she then pushed off from the ceiling. Lifting her sword above her head, she snapped it down onto the mages back causing him to fold like flimsy cardboard. He slammed into the ground breaking the concrete floor beneath his body. Struggling to his feet the mage looked up expecting Signum to be above him, she was not. In the time it took him to look back to ground level Signum had appeared in front of him. He tried to back step but found his feet bound in place. Again, Signum used all her magical power to augment the strength in her arms. She swung at the mage and he raised his staff to defend but it was like trying to stop a freight train with a chopstick.

Garand fired repeatedly, each slug slamming into the mages helmet sending his head snapping back with each shot. The constant stream of cranial impacts was more than the mage could take even with the heavy armour. After nearly emptying his magazine, Garand's shot gun slugs punched through the mages helmet shattering it like glass. The final round crushed its way through the man's skull and out the other side causing his head to snap backward one final time. After confirming the kill, Garand checked to see how his partner was doing.

Signum continually slashed at her opponent each time he tried to defend but each attempt proved futile. The steady barrage of attacks had caused the mage beneath the amour to suffer broken bones and internal bleeding but still he held his ground trying to find a way to turn the fight in his favour. Signum took a step back and the mage thought he saw his chance. He began casting a spell to release the bind on his legs, but the moment he started Signum released the spell. Not questioning why the mage steadied his weapon and made a desperate charge at the sword knight. Drawing all the magic she could muster, she forced it into both her arms and legs. Signum allowed the mage to attack her. With a simple swaying motion, she avoided the thrust of his weapon. In the blink of an eye, she countered. The force of her blow tore his weapon from his hands as her blade continued towards his torso. The sharpened edge cut into his armour digging past its many layers down to his skin cutting open a massive gash in his chest.

The armoured mage collapsed onto the floor. No longer able to continue he passed out. Signum check to ensure he was no longer a threat then walked part way towards Garand as he jumped down from the crate he was standing on.

"I'll start checking the bodies for anything useful you should check on our little helper," he told her.

Signum nodded and walked back towards the aircraft while Garand began using his PDA to take photos of faces, weapons and equipment. He also took a few of the devises and one of the pistols he found for further examination.


	10. Chapter 10

Signum walked up the loading ramp of the cargo aircraft. Inside, pallets stacked high with various boxes had been strapped to the floor. She examined the labels on the crates. On the outside, they were marked as dried foods but that was a simple ploy, one used frequently in arms smuggling. Moving towards the cockpit, she called out.

"Agito?"

"Over here," a small voice responded. Signum followed the voice into the cockpit. She looked around the cabin just in time to see Agito poke her head out from behind a chair, "I copied all the information in the flight computer before they could delete it," She told her partner.

"Good work," Signum complimented as the small unison device floated over to her. With the information they needed n hand, it was time to deal with the cargo. Exiting the aircraft, she looked around for Garand.

"All done?" he asked appearing at the base of the ramp.

"Yes and you?"

Garand held up a small duffle bag, "Yeah, I got plenty to keep me busy. All that's left is to deal with the cargo. I guess the best thing will be to make an anonymous call." The gruff soldier suggested slinging the duffle over his shoulder.

"Did you find anything useful?" the sword knight inquired while Agito perched down onto her shoulder.

"Not sure, I got cell phones, devices, a lap top, and pistols. I'm sure if we examine them we'll find something of relevance," he answered as they left the hanger.

Signum abruptly halted placing her hand on the hilt of her sword. Noticing her change in stance right away, Garand readied his shotgun. Seemingly waiting for them was a man in a worn black toque and scarf. Signum immediately recognized the person. It was the same man from the aftermath of the bombings. He stood with his sword in hand, glaring from behind his scarf at the two of them. Signum suddenly sensed something was wrong. The stranger was just standing there in a neutral posture rather than a fighting stance.

She quickly put herself between Garand and the hanger. Displaying her palm in the direction of the building, she activated the strongest shield she could muster. In an instant, the hanger disappeared in a violent blast of flame. The ground shook from the tremendous force of the shock wave. The rumbling of the ground beneath his feet took Garand completely by surprise, knocking him off his feet. He cursed loudly but the ringing in both their ears prevented the profanity from being audible. Garand quickly gathered enough of his senses to role onto his stomach and point his weapon in the direction of the stranger. However, the assailant had already made his withdraw.

Garand stood back up and looked back at what had once been the hanger, now a burning pile of rubble, "I guess the plane is no longer an issue. So was that the guy from your report?" He asked brushing a few bits of burning debris off his cloths.

Signum nodded, "It appears this group and him were connected somehow," she looked over her shoulder at him, "We should leave. An explosion like this is bound to draw attention from the Enforcers."

"Roger that," Garand responded.

During the walk back to the SUV Signum ran the information she had gathered thus far. Something bothered her above all else. For the entire day, Garand had seemed unsurprised by any of the information they had found. It felt almost as if he was leading her around by the nose. There was still a good chance she was wrong about this possibility, so she opted to say nothing and continue to observe him for the time being.

After getting into the SUV Garand drove the three of them back out onto the high way. A few minutes later emergency vehicles sped past headed towards the airfield.

"What are we going to do now?" Agito asked breaking the silence inside the cab.

Signum folded her arms and closed her eyes, "I don't think this is about a few unaccounted for smoke grenades. There is something else to what's going on," she paused, "Garand, where are the original prototypes for the rifles and body armour kept?"

"A TSAB storage facility, it's about two hours from here."

"We need to go there."

"You got it."

Later after clearing the security check at the gates, the trio drove past several high security warehouses until they reached one near the center of the facility. The building was three stories tall with no windows, with a large loading dock and a single man door. It was uniform, non-descript, like all the other building around it. The only feature unique to it was the three-digit number painted on the door for the loading dock.

After exiting the vehicle Signum and Agito followed Garand up to the man door. The two women watched as he placed his palm on the scanner next to the man door. Garand then punched in a pass code. The door let out a loud clank as it unlocked.

Garand led Signum and Agito inside, flipping the light switch on the wall as they entered. As the lights flickered to life the buildings contents came into view. Stacked on rows of metal shelves were olive drab coloured crates, carefully organized into columns, two high on each level. Signum walked up and down the rows, observing the area for any details that might help them, while Agito hovered nearby.

"Originally TSAB wanted to use nine millimetre and 5.56 but both rounds were too small to get the effectiveness we needed," Garand told her, "Of course this was before I joined the project. They had already made a few hundred test weapons when I arrived and told them we needed to start over from scratch. Of course, rather than scrap them they got stored here. Also, the body armour was too large and bulky. It was more like a full suite of plate mail, that armour is also stored here."

Although Signum was paying full attention to his explanation, she appeared more interested in the crates. Pulling one of the olive drab plastic boxes off the shelf, she placed it on the floor. Using a key obtained from the security station, she opened the crate. What she found inside confirmed her concerns.

The box had been filled with scrap metal instead of the M-16 style rifles that should have been contained inside. Signum pulled out another crate at random and opened it. Again, she found more scrap metal. Garand walked up next to her and looked into the box with concern. The two of them checked another eight boxes taken at random all of them had the same contents.

"This is not good," Signum stated looking around the warehouse, "Every one of these must have been switched."

"It looks like the body armour is gone to," Garand told Signum plainly, kicking one of the crates in displeasure.

The sword knight lost herself in thought and found her mind wondering back to Garand's behaviour. Even after discovering the warehouse emptied of its contents, with hundreds of firearms and sets of body armour gone, he showed no surprise. Signum decided to confront him about it.

"Garand," she began, giving the PMC a stern look, "What's going on. Right from the start, nothing about this has fazed you. You knew about all of this already didn't you?"

Garand smirked, "Yes I did."

"Then why did you say nothing?"

"There were a few details I needed to confirm first," he looked over his shoulder, "Now though I'd say it's obvious TSAB and Sierra are compromised. What's worse no one seems to have noticed. I'd also be willing to bet that the machines used to manufacture the 5.56 and 9 millimetre ammunition are missing too."

"So we're going to report this right?" Agito asked clasping her hands behind her head.

"No," Signum answered, "We will tell Hayate what we have found but that is all we will do for now," she said as a worried look crossed her face.

Signum wondered if Hayate might have suspected something like this was going on. Perhaps this investigation was less about missing equipment and more about the ramifications of that missing equipment. It took some one of very high rank to approve accesses to these facilities and even higher to removing something unnoticed. Signum had a bad feeling about this investigation from the start, now it had gotten worse. Garand was right someone was moving within TSAB to acquire these weapons, but the most important thing that needed to be determined was why. If it was for simple profit, at this point, it would be a relief but her gut told her otherwise.

Garand looked around the warehouse, "524 rifles, 284 pistols, 312 sets of armour, and the equipment to manufacture all of the above. This isn't going to be pretty."


	11. Chapter 11

After leaving the warehouse, Signum and Garand parted ways, each with their own tasks to perform. Garand, had made his way into the city to run an errand. By now, it was late afternoon, the end of the workday. A flood of people hastened towards home and the traffic became so heavy Garand chose to park his truck at a parking garage several blocks from his destination. Slinging his pack filled with the evidence he had collected over his shoulder, he headed out of the garage. The late fall air carried a pleasant chill making the walk to his destination a relaxing endeavour, despite the heavy foot traffic along the sidewalks. Along the way, he stopped at a coffee shop for something warm to drink. After acquiring a cup of the blackest coffee known to man, he departed the shop. As he exited, Garand encountered a man in a ball cap and leather jacket with a high collar that concealed the lower half of his face.

Stepping aside, he let the man walk past him into the store. Once he had passed, Garand exited the shop and waited on the sidewalk out front. A few minutes later, the man in the leather jacket came back out.

"Funny that we would chose to stop at the same place," Garand commented.

"Not really," the man in the ball cap replied as he walked past him.

Garand quickly walked up next to him, matching his pace, "I managed to find a few useful bits of info. I just need you to follow up on them for me."

"What did you get?"

"Flight data, cell phones, deceives, and a laptop. Almost didn't get anything though."

"That explosion on the old airfield right?" The man in the ball cap inquired.

Garand nodded, "It was the same guy from Signum's report."

The man thought for a moment, "This and Vivo's failed kidnapping must be related somehow," he postulated.

"What about the bombings?" Garand asked, "Maybe that's related to?"

"About that," his associate replied, "It's hasn't been directly stated in the news yet, but no one has taken responsibility for the attacks."

Garand stopped walking, "What? That makes no sense, why would someone set up multiple simultaneous bombings, killing a few hundred people and not make some kind of statement?"

"I don't know, not yet at least. It also looks like certain elements inside TSAB are taking action in response to the attacks. It's beginning to like they are preparing for an internal power struggle, a big one."

"Great, but how's this related to the incident with Vivio?" Garand asked as he started walking again.

"I don't it's just a gut feeling. However, our investigation is just starting so it's too early to draw any conclusions. One thing though. That airfield you stormed. A large medical equipment and research firm purchased it a few weeks before project Sierra was approved. The firm has close ties to TSAB so there's a chance all this is related. I'll let you know when I find out more."

Garand handed the man in the ball cap his backpack, "Hopefully something in here will be useful."

The man took the pack from him, "Hopefully."

Elsewhere in the city, Hayate was in a meeting with a group of TSAB generals. The topic of discussion was project Sierra. Hayate had come to give a progress report on the project, something she had to do in person once a month. The review board was critical about every delay and mishap. It felt as if they did not care about any of the good news. Such as having reached the final testing phase ahead of schedule, they seemed focused only on bad news. Fortunately, there was little in the way of unfavourable occurrences to report.

Having been carrying on for nearly two hours Hayate returned to her seat and awaited further questions from the Generals.

"I still think this project is a waste of resources," General Hayes complained, "TSAB should have no need for mass based weapons of any kind."

"What if we were to encounter any enemy that was immune to magic? What then?" General Tollen asked.

"That is impossible," Hayes argued.

"You're forgetting if we can equip some of our less magically inclined troops with such weapons it will help alleviate our current frontline personnel shortage." General Myers pointed out.

"I still don't like it. We are using technology created by that bastard Scaglietti," Hayes growled.

"That's not entirely true sir," Hayate pointed out, "We call them AMF weapons, but that's only a loose and general term used to mislead anyone looking into the project. The truth is little of Scaglietti's research is involved in this project."

"I find where the technology came from rather unimportant at this point," Tollen said, "The real concern I have is there was a reason mass weapons were banned yet here we sit working on a project to renew their use and for the sole purpose of killing mages. We may be starting small but eventually we could end up going down a road we can't turn back from."

"Mages kill other mages sir adding small arms to the mix will change little. I also think you're being overly pessimistic." Hayate pointed out, "The fact is you can destroy entire cities with magic as well as kill, it's not hard. It takes only a few minor alterations to a device to do so and all military devices have this adjustment made."

"I still fail to see how this is a good idea," Tollen probed.

"We have all seen battles between mages," Hayate began, "The power that is thrown back and forth can be enough to level city blocks and inflict severe collateral damage."

"That's why we have the barriers," Hayes pointed out.

Hayate looked at Hayes coldly, "When was the last time you saw a criminal mage use a barrier? Even if we create one ourselves, it's often too late or it would take too long to set up."

Hayes fell silent.

Hayate held up her thumb and index finger as if it were a pistol, "What if, when responding to a terrorist mage. Instead of engaging him in a messy battle," she pointed her 'pistol' at Tollen, "We could simply point, shoot, and kill the enemy," there was an unnerving coldness in her voice and in her eyes, "Simple and clean. We could save many more lives with such a tactical advantage. This is why I chose to support this program."

"This is all a pointless," Myers pointed out, "TSAB and the Mid-Childa government discussed this project at length before authorizing it. Our task is only to see it successfully to completion not to concern ourselves with the reasoning behind it."

Hayes stood up from his chair, "Well then I shall see you all at the next briefing I have other tasking to attend to," he told them as he left.

Tollen was next to leave, "Thank you for your work Colonel Yagami."

The only ones remaining in the room were now Hayate and Myers. The two exchanged cold looks across the table until Myers spoke up, "About the other issue. I just got my hands on the results of the analysis of the bombs used in the attacks," he told her while folding his hands and placing them on the table, "Augmented Plastic Explosive, the same type currently under development."

"Then someone is funnelling Sierra assets into the black market?"

Myers shook his head, "If only that were the case. The chemical signature of the bombs did not match that of the ones developed by us."

Hayate was surprised and concerned at this new development, "That means this is not about stolen equipment. Someone has duplicated the manufacturing process."

Myers nodded, "Right, because of this Intelligence will be investigating everyone connected with the project. Be sure you're ready for it."

"Yes sir," she replied as she stood and then left.

Walking through the sunlit halls of the head quarters building Hayate lost herself to her thoughts. Events were progressing quickly and in a concerning direction. The distinct possibility that another large-scale incident was looming on the horizon was becoming very apparent. The real concern was could she prevent it before it happened or would she be forced to simply react to it. For time being, she had to place her hopes in Signum and Garand's investigation. However, there was one other thing she was worried about, if their enemy could build their own equipment, why would they be stealing things like gas grenades from Sierra?


	12. Chapter 12

Authors Note:

Sorry for taking so long with this chapter I've been kinda distracted. Damn you mine craft _. Any way I did all the editing on this one solo, since my beta reader hasn't replied to me for a while. So let me know how I did, enjoy.

Two days later Garand was seated across from Hayate. As she reclined in the chair behind her desk, the young officer mulled over a folder filled with the personal information of 60 potential candidates for the new unit. A marked expression of concern spread across her face as she read the profile of each candidate.

"Are you sure about this?" She asked Garand with a hint of worry, "Most of these people have certain," she paused, "Issues, not to mention many failed their first attempt at battle school."

Garand pointed to the bottom of one of the coarse reports where the instructor's comments were written, "Reckless, shows poor judgement, lacks self control, recommend dismissal. I'll give you one guess who wrote these," he then pointed to the name of the instructor on the reports, "Takamchi washed out most of these people all for the wrong reasons," handing her another folder containing reports on the same individuals from several weeks later, he allowed her to skim over them. Each one indicated that the above individuals were excellent soldiers and had great potential, "Every one of these people refused to give up despite Takamachi's poor evaluations. The fact that they tried again also says a lot about their dedication. Their instructors the second time around had nothing but praise for their abilities and potential."

Hayate flipped through the papers, skimming over the information on them as she thought on Garand's choices and their possible impact. She knew Nanoha would not like having these people brought onto the base and trained in a combat style she disagreed with. However, the young woman's feelings on the matter were irrelevant. As much as Hayate wanted to consider her friends view point, this project needed to be carried out. In addition, creating this unit was an order, she could not simple say no and not perform her duties. There was also the fact she did not have the skill set to select the best individuals for the task ahead. Her only option was to differ to Garand's judgement. Hayate had come to trust his decisions in matters such as these. She knew Garand had put the appropriate thought into these choices and that the people he selected would be best suited to the task ahead. A task that went far beyond the official weapons testing she had been instructed to carry out. For the moment however, she had to keep her additional intentions hidden.

"Alright, I'll approve the transfers," she paused for a moment realizing he had not yet told her who he wanted as instructors for the program, "Who did you want to bring in to assist in the training? I imagine you'll want to keep Signum and Vice in the unit but you probably need more staff then just those two," she asked looking up at him while setting the personnel files aside.

Garand leaned back into his chair, "Actually I heard through the grape vine that the Cyborg's from the JS attacks are being released soon? I would like to request assistance from two of them. The ones I'm interested in are Cinque and Dieci."

"That may be difficult. Dieci's parole is coming up, but Cinque it another matter. There is also the issue that this project is still classified and they are still considered a security risk," Hayate thought for a moment. She had a few ideas that might allow the two Cyborg's to join the team, but it would take a few favours and some convincing first, "I'll see what I can do but I can't give you any guarantees. Is that all you need for personnel?"

"No, the last thing I'll need is a Sergeant Major," a wide grin spread across his face as he mentioned the rank, "but I already have the perfect man in mind for that position though."

Hayate let out a small sigh, she could already picture the man Garand had selected in her head, "Have you heard back from your contact yet?" she inquired redirecting the conversation.

Garand scratched the scar on his face, "Yeah, the airfield being used by our thieves was purchased by a large pharmaceutical company last year. I'm sure you've heard of them before, Rickard Solutions."

Hayate immediately recognized the name. Rickard Solutions or just Rickard's as it was commonly called; manufactured everything from band-aids to gene splicers. They supplied virtually all of TSABs medical supplies and equipment and were one of the few companies capable of doing business on other TSAB member worlds. In light of this, there was only one question to ask.

"You think they are involved in this?" she inquired.

"It's definitely plausible," Garand answered, "From what I've gathered RS bought the airfield to turn it into a relief center of sorts. They were planning on storing large amounts of food and medical supplies there. They then could be quickly airlifted from the facility to any ware on Mid-Childa or even off world. It was intended to be part of a disaster relief initiative dreamed up after the JS Incident. Basically, a new rapid deployment disaster countermeasures unit was to be based out of the airfield. Although the project stalled and the place has been sitting vacant ever since. There are four other companies associated with the project I'm having my contacts look into them as well."

"What about the destination of the transport you found?"

"We didn't get much. Most of the data in the flight computer had been erased, not really a surprise though. We did manage to find out its intended destination," Garand stood up from his chair no longer able to stand sitting down, "The transport was bound for a Saints Church chapel way out in the sticks."

Hayate rested her hands into her lap and considered the information given to her. She wondered if the church was involved as well, it was something she would have to address depending on how things progressed. If the church was, a willing participant in these events things could turn out very badly. The Church was the only group, other than TSAB, authorized to perform extra dimensional travel. If they were helping this group of weapons smugglers, the repercussions would be disastrous.

"Is there any evidence the church is somehow helping this group?" she asked cautiously.

"Other than the fact the chapel was their destination there's none."

"Then I'll investigate the churches possible connection myself," Hayate said with concern, "I have friends among them. I can easily make a few quite inquiries."

"You sure ma'am?" Garand asked glancing over at the young woman as he walked to the window, "I thought you wanted to avoid direct involvement in the investigation?"

"I do, but in this case it will be less suspicious if I simply contact my friends"

"Your call, by the way where's Signum? She never showed up this morning."

Hayate did not answer him choosing to stay silent. Garand knew what this meant. Signum was following a special instruction from her one that could not be discussed, understanding this he did not inquire a second time and instead moved on.

"There is one thing I'd like to look into myself. I think I may have figured out how all those weapons were stolen from the storage facility." Garand walked to the door, "After I make a stop I'll try and confirm my theory. I'll see you later Ma'am."

Elsewhere Signum sat in the driver seat of a four-door sedan dressed in civilian attire, clearly waiting for someone. Next to her was Vita who seemed to be steadily getting more and more impatient.

"Where is he? He should have been here half an hour ago," the red haired knight complained.

"He will be here," Signum affirmed. All though in truth, she too was getting a bit impatient. It was however, necessary. The man they were waiting for was a high priority individual. The information he had was of great importance but that was all Hayate had told her.

People coming and going during their lunch break populated the area around the park where they had stationed themselves. It was a busy time a perfect opportunity to hide among the crowd and avoid being discovered and attacked. This was likely what the man they had come to meet had in mind. It all seemed troublesome to Signum. She was a woman of direct action, covert actions like the one Hayate had tasked her with were not her forte but she was adapting, all be it slowly.

"I just don't get it," Vita complained leaning back into her seat, "Why is Hayate having us do this? Isn't this why she has Garand?"

"She asked us because she trusts us," the Sword Knight answered.

Vita did not have a further coment to add on the subject so she opted for a change, "So you and Garand have become good friends right? What are you going to do after your current assignment is over? Are you going to try and find an excuse to keep working with him?" The coy smile on the Red Knights face clearly alluded to a relationship beyond that of friends.

"I will take whatever assignment I am given and Garand will do the same," Signum told her companion unaffected by her implication, "We are both professionals. We won't let our personal relationships determine our carrier decisions."

"So you do have a relationship with him?" Vita asked. It was a stretch of a jab, but it was enough to rile a counter from Signum.

"I would think you would miss him more than me. If he were to leave who else could you verbally spar with," Signum closed her eyes and let a small smile creep across her lips, "The grin on your face whenever you trade jabs with him certainly."

Vita promptly interrupted her, "Don't even finish that thought," she said with a defeated scowl, "Damn Badger," she mumbled.

Suddenly one of the rear passenger doors opened and a nervous looking man stepped silently into the car. Signum glanced back at the man. He was average height, wore a dark blue suit and had a pair of glasses resting on his nose. Once he had closed the door, The Sword Knight started the car and pulled away. As they departed the park, Vita looked over her shoulder at the man. He had the look of some on who had not slept in days.

"So you're the one we were supposed to meet?" She asked unimpressed, "What do you know that's so important."

The man looked over at Vita. His eyes were cold and yet she could sense fear in them, "I know the reasons behind the mass bombings."


	13. Chapter 13

Garand made a brief detour to the test hanger before leaving the base. In order to convince the likes of his perspective instructor of the benefits of joining the program, he needed to demonstrate what the weapons under development were capable of. The best way to do that was to give the man a hand's on trial of the new system. Once Garand had signed for an XCR rifle and several full magazines he returned to his truck. After loading his weapon and ammunition into the bed he sat down on the tail gate and took a brown paper bag from a back pack that was resting off to one side. From it he retrieved his lunch, consisting of a bottle of water and a chicken sandwich. As he ate Garand used his PDA to comb over the Sergeant Major's record one final time.

The name of the Non Commissioned Member was Jacob Enfield, age 43. Born on an administrated world of little note. He joined TSAB at the more traditional age of 18, choosing to enlist with the ground forces as an Infantryman. A veteran participant of numerous deployments and missions, his experience was second to none. Enfield was a seasoned soldier and any unit would have leaped at the chance to have him as a member. However due to damage sustained to his Linker Core he had been removed from the Infantry and given a position as an instructor. It was an assignment he was thoroughly unsatisfied with, according to his superiors. To him Garand's offer would be everything he wanted, a chance to get back into the field and do what he loved best, kicking in doors. Finishing his sandwich Garand then closed the back of his truck and climbed into the driver seat.

After nearly three hours of driving, Garand pulled up to the gate of a small TSAB Ground Forces Reserve Base. Once he had cleared the security check he drove onto the grounds and parked his truck in a lot in front of a small training field near the headquarters. Occupying the field were a group of green, new recruit Mage's, practicing basic combat drills. Garand stepped up to the edge of the training grounds and folded his arms across his chest, observing the exercises the young men and women were subjected to. The entire group was made up of Mid-Style Mage's, the 'riflemen' of TSAB. Today however, they were not practicing marksmen ship drills. They were learning the fine art of Close Quarters Battle. Each was being carefully instructed on the proper use of a standard TSAB staff as both a spear and a bludgeon. He watched as they sparred in pairs many with a certain lack of enthusiasm a clear sign of their inexperience.

"What part of this training to you maggots not comprehend!" A loud deep voice bellowed, "Each and every one of you shall learn these skills. Contrary to what you peons may think you will need these skills!"

Garand followed the sound of the commanding voice with his eyes and was led to its source. Marching through the ranks of recruits was his Sergeant Major of choice. The man was average height and wore the same green coveralls as the recruits. Stocky and wide in the shoulders the man had near perfect posture and a long gate similar to Garand's. His head was shaven, not bald, simply very short. Lastly was his mustache. It was long, symmetrical and curled up wards. To add to everything the man seemed to exude discipline from every action and every word. His orders demanded obedience, his gestures demonstrated his authority. As far as Garand could tell, the man groomed his mustache with pure force of will by shouting at it in the mirror every morning until it curled upwards in submission. Garand then noticed that one of the recruits made a snide tongue click at the Sargent Major's lecture. Of course, the man immediately detected the insubordinate act and stormed up to the perpetrating recruit.

"Private Roark!"

The young Private in question snapped to attention, "Sir!"

"Do you disagree with me Private?" Enfield demanded to know barking into the recruits face from only inches away.

"Sir, if we don't miss then we don't need to know how to beat them with our staffs," the private replied with a confidence only an amateur could display. It is an attitude all too common in new recruits that, I can shoot straight and hit my target every time delusion.

"Did your partner hit your head Private or are you always this stupid!" Enfield said sternly as he placed his hands on his hips. Suddenly, without warning, the Sergeant Major swung his fist at the Privates head. Roark attempted to defend with his staff but failed and Enfield's fist collided with the side of the recruit's skull knocking him off his feet, "Congratulations maggot you are now dead!" Enfield then stomped on the young man's chest holding him down. The instructor then looked over the other recruits, "Listen up you scum! In combat, situations change drastically and if you cannot adapt you will die!" The Sargent Major activated his device and deployed his staff, "Close combat Mage's can close distances in the time it takes to line up a second shot! When that happens, if you can't defend yourself you will find a blade lodged in your chest!" He slammed the tip of his staff into the ground next to Roark's head nicking his ear and drawing blood, "Contrary to what you might believe Magic based combat can be lethal! Just because TSAB plays nice does not mean your enemies will do the same! I am here to give you the skills you need to keep your selves out of a body bag! You will learn this! You will practice this! You will use these skills! Do you get me!"

Together the recruits acknowledged the information with a loud, "Yes sir!"

Enfield looked down at the injured Private Roark and removed his size eleven from his ribs, "Now get up! Get on your feet!" The Private quickly complied and resumed his training.

That was when Garand approached Enfield, "Sergeant Major Enfield!" He called.

Enfield turned to face him, "Sir is there a reason you are on my training field?" He asked clearly displeased at Garand's presence.

"There is Sergeant Major. I want you to join my unit."

Enfield looked over Garand and the Multi-Cam uniform he wore, "I don't recall any branches of TSAB using a uniform like yours."

"I'm actually a consultant for the unit being formed."

"So you're a PMC then," Enfield frowned, "I don't like PMC's."

"Even if I can get you back in the field?"

Enfield glared at Garand cautiously as he considered what he was being offered, "You've made mass based weapons that cancel out magic."

Garand smiled, "Smart man."

"I've heard the rumors, but I want to see what these weapons can do first."

"Wait, you know who's behind those bombings?" Vita asked, nearly shouting with surprise.

"No Vita, he said he knows the reasons behind the bombings. Not who is responsible," Signum interrupted.

"That's right," the nervous man in the back seat affirmed as he watched the world on the other side of the car window roll by. He then slouched into his seat trying to find a way to relax, "With the information I have it is possible to determine the one's responsible for the attacks. Unfortunately there's a problem," he paused and clenched his hands together.

Signum waited for a few moments to see if the man would continue. When he did not she pressed him to do so, "What is it you discovered?"

"I can't tell you. I don't know how you might react, since you work with Yagami I mean," he said in a low but still audible voice.

His statement gave Signum a bad feeling. He was clearly implying that Hayate might be involved. If she was somehow connected to the bombings, all of TSAB could turn on her. Signum shook her head. No, she thought to herself, Hayate would never do anything to harm innocent people. The Sword Knight then remembered what Hayate had asked for back at the shooting range, her trust. This was not the time to doubt a member of her family. She wanted to demand clarification from her passenger. However, when she looked back over her shoulder to request he continue, the anxiety on his face made her change her mind. Clarification could wait until later, at the very least, until she could speak to Hayate again.

"What do you mean?" Vita growled, "Are you saying we had something to do with the bombings?" She continued angrily, clearly not mimicking Signum's thought patterns.

The man said nothing. For a moment it seemed like he would stay that way, but then with a concerned tone he replied, "I'm only saying Major Yagami may be involved," he answered emphasizing, may.

Vita nearly exploded. The small knight was ready to crawl over the seat into the back and strangle the man, "What kind of crap are you talking about! There is no way she would be involved in something like that!"

"I'm simply saying it's feasible," the man told her with impressive calm, "Until I can properly analyze everything I've found I have to assume even Yagami is involved."

"You should have just kept your mouth shut," Vita growled as she faced forward, still enraged and offended. For what remained of the drive none of the occupants uttered another word. After hours of driving, Signum pulled up to the security check point of a small TSAB base. One of the two guards approached the open driver side window and asked for identification. Signum handed the guard her ID card.

As he took the card from her, Signum's vision suddenly went white and her head snapped back. She felt a sensation of weightlessness and her ears rang violently. Time, seemed to stretch out. Then there was only darkness. She had passed out. Minutes or moments later she struggled back into the conscious world. Her whole body ached and throbbed. Disoriented, she tried to get her bearings. Examining her surroundings, the knight realized she was still inside the car but it was now upside down. Vita was hanging next to her from her seat belt without any sign of movement and she could not see into the back seat due to the collapsed roof. Signum slowly struggled to unfasten her seat belt. When she finally succeeded, she dropped down onto the ceiling of the car with a cringe of pain notifying her that her leg was caught amongst the foot pedals. Twisting her body to one side she was able to free the limb then drag herself out of the wrecked car through the window. As she crawled out of the car through the broken glass scattered around the vehicle, Laevatein activated her Barrier Jacket. The device used its properties to assist her recovery as best it could.

After making it several feet away from the car she looked back to see the back end of the vehicle had be destroyed, explosively. Signum struggled to get to her feet but her head began to throb with intense pain. She felt dizzy and light headed as she tried to unsteadily circle around to the other side of the car to pull Vita free. Then all at once her legs gave out and she passed out flopping down onto the concrete.


	14. Chapter 14

Authors note: I gave Laevateinn some talking to do but it was suggested I do its lines in German. So I did, along with the translation. I tried to arrange it in what seemed to be a logical way, to me at least. Let me know if you have any thoughts. Also, as always feel free to poke at my story and tell me what you think could use improvement or what just doesn't seem right.

Enfield followed Garand as he outlined the new weapons system, but before they could reach his truck the air was rocked by a powerful explosion. The sound of the blast caused both men to instinctively duck.

"What in the holly hell?" Enfield barked, "An explosion? We'll discuss this later Mr. Garand, I need to get back to my troops," Enfield quickly left running back towards his recruits.

Left to his own devices, Garand decided to investigate the source of the blast. He ran towards the column of smoke rising into the sky. Following it he was led to the nearby gate house. The first thing he saw was a smoking, over turned car. The second was Signum lying on the pavement.

"Sig!" He shouted braking into a mad sprint, "Sig, can you hear me?" He called as he skidded to a halt and crouched down next to her. Quickly he confirmed her vitals, respiration and pulse. Continuing his check, the PMC examined her for injuries. The only significant external wound he found was a steadily bleeding head wound on the upper part of her forehead. Glancing to her hip he saw her sword, "Laevateinn how's is she?"

"Keine innere Blutungen festgestellt. Schwere Schädeltrauma gefunden, empfehlen die sofortige Medi-vac." [No internal bleeding detected. Severe cranial trauma found, recommend immediate medic-vac]

"Can I move her?"

"Ja wohl." [Yes sir]

Garand carefully picked up Signum and moved her away from the car behind a large raised flower bed made of stone, "Any others in the car?"

"Ja, Vita und ein Zivilist," [Yes, Vita and one civilian] Garand was about to run back over to the ruined car when Leviateen stopped him, "Warning; identifizierte Areal Mage ist im Anflug. Kein IFF Antwort." [Warning; unidentified areal Mage's on approach. No IFF response]

"Fuck, Leviateen I need you to come with me, I don't have my rifle," he told the sword taking it from Signum's belt along with a fist full of cartridges, "Keep Sig's Barrier Jacket online," 

"Ja wohl." [Yes sir]

Garand ran back towards the over turned vehicle clipping Laevateinn to the back of his waist with a carabineer, "Vita!" He shouted, "Vita! Can you hear me?" He continued to shout as he went around to the passenger side of the vehicle. Crouching down he looked through the car window and saw Vita unconscious, hanging from her seat belt. Her Barrier Jacket had activated automatically just as Signum's had, to ensure her life signs stayed stable. Her weapon however was still in pendent form hanging from her neck, "Eisen is it safe to move Vita?"

"Ja."

With the devices okay, Garand reached into the cab and cradled the back of Vita's neck with his forearm. Then taking out a pocket knife, he cut her free letting her body flop down under careful control. With her now released from the restraint, he began to slide her out of the vehicle. All at once there was a violent series of explosions and the ground rumbled as the small installation's headquarters was struck by powerful ranged attack spells. Moments later a squadron of areal Mage's streaked overhead. Garand was out if time. Moving as quickly as possible, he took Vita and placed her next to Signum, before rushing back to the car to retrieve the last passenger. At the same time air raid sirens blared out across the installation, heralding the arrival of enemy combatants. Garand found the man who had been riding in the back of the car lying on the ceiling of the sedan unrestrained, making it easy to grab him and drag the man out. As Garand pulled him free, one of the Arial Mage's swung around and aimed his staff at the PMC. The mage fired just as he got clear of the car.

The blast of energy struck the car, forcing it to erupt into a sphere of fire and smoke, throwing debris in all directions and knocking Garand to the ground. Scrambling to his feet he rushed to cover continuing to drag the man behind him. As he pulled his last casualty to safety, Garand saw six large transport trucks scream through the bases front gate, loaded with armed troops. The moment those truck pass, his instincts told him this was not a simple terrorist attack. These troops were here with a real mission and a strategic objective. The Areal Mage above Garand examined the area below for his target having lost sight of the PMC in the smoke. As soon as the attacker spotted his intended target he brought his staff to bear on him and fired.

Garand quickly drew his pistol and fired a round creating a magic shield to his front. When the blast hit the shield it detonated dispersing the attacks energy outward and away from himself, like reactive armor. Garand was stuck in a bad situation. He had little to no cover and he had to protect three people. It was going to be necessary to take a risk and make a gamble. If he was right his idea would work. If he was wrong he would be dead. Then again, he loved situations such as this. So what could he possibly complain about? Returning his weapon to its holster he took hold of Laevateinn's hilt.

"Laevateinn three carts!" He requested.

"Ja wohl," The sword fired off all three cartridges in its magazine. 

The mage smirked at the PMC's attempt at taking on the use of a swordsman's weapon. He could tell that Garand had only the vaguest of understandings when it came to the proper use a sword. He pointed his staff at the PMC but did not fire a raged attack spell; instead he dove towards Garand planning to run him though the center of his chest with his spear tipped staff.

Mimicking Signum's stance as best he could, Garand gripped the swords hilt, "Schlangebeiben!" He barked as he ripped the blade from its scabbard.

The blade quickly broke into segments. Linked by metallic wire it snaked towards the areal Mage at a blinding speed. The man did not expect Garand to be able to use such an attack but maintained enough sense to try and dog. His immediate response was to pull up and over shoot the PMC. However, Laevateinn easily compensated for the Mage's movements. The deadly steel serpent wrapped around the man's neck, clamping down on him as he streaked past Garand. Grabbing a section of the exposed wire with his free hand, the PMC snapped the sword downwards and across his body with all his strength. The blade segments instantly went taught. The mages forward momentum combined with the opposing force from Laevateinn being pulled on worked in conjunction, creating a force strong enough to snap off the man's head with ease. With the attack complete and Laevateinn having expended all the magic provided by the cartridges, it returned to its original form.

"Nice," Garand snickered with approval, "Didn't think I was this good."

"Sie tat es nicht. Ich habe die notwendigen Arbeiten," [You are not. I did all the necessary work.] the device informed him, "Alles, was Sie taten, war swing mich wie eine Keule." [All you did was swing me like a club]

"Well pardon me for not being a professional swordsman."

Garand now had a few moments to take in all that was going on around him. The mages were assaulting the headquarters building while being supported by the troops that had just been trucked in. Seeing the ground troops and their equipment it was clear they were connected to the missing Project Sierra equipment. Each one was carrying the same M16 style weapon and wore prototype body armor that made them look like knights with rifles. These ground troops quickly began routing the TSAB forces and raising hell all across the base. From what he could gather the Mage's and the Riflemen had separate objectives. The Mage's were infiltrating the Base HQ while the Riflemen seemed to be trying to occupy the remaining areas.

His time to take in the situation was abruptly cut short when two more Mage's came at him. Both were close combat types, both carried swords and wore the same blue and black Barrier Jackets as the first. One of them immediately rushed him. But instead of assaulting Garand, the man darted past him targeting Vita. Snapping his pistol out of his holster Garand fired a round over the Mages shoulder. A green magic shield deployed directly in front of the Mage. Unable to alter direction in time the man slammed into it stunning himself. The second Mage streaked forward pushing the tip of his sword towards Garand's throat. The PMC barely managed to block the attack by using Laevateinn to redirect the blow to his left side. Garand's successful block made an opening on the Mage's left side. Quickly, he swung his pistol into the side of the man's head knocking him off balance. Garand advanced on the mage intending to deliver a killing blow but someone grabbed him from behind and flung the big man backwards like a rag doll. The PMC scrambled back to his feet. Both Mage's were again in front of him weapons at the ready.

"Sie können sie nicht schlagen," [You cannot beat them] Laevateinn cautioned.

"I wouldn't bet on that, besides you got a better idea?" Grand asked reloading the devices internal magazine.

"Rückzug," [Retreat] the device advised.

"No retreat, they'd just kill us from behind," pistol in one hand sword in the other Garand considered his options. It was obvious he could not retreat, not if it meant Signum, Vita and the civilian would be killed. He had to hold his ground until TSAB alert Mage's could arrive. Only one choice was open, hold position and protect his charges. It would have been easy if he had his rifle but he had to make do with what he had. Then again what fun would it be if things were easy?

Together the two Mage's charged towards Garand one attacking his left side the other going after his right. The Mage on his left side reached him first swinging his sword in a horizontal slash he aimed for Garand's center of mass. Garand pointed the tip of Laevateinn downwards and blocked the attack but the mage had the advantage of a two handed grip. He pushed his blade forward into the PMC's block trying to overpower him. The second Mage quickly advanced on Garand's opposite side. As the second Mage readied his weapon to attack the PMC's unprotected right side Garand snapped his pistol up and fired a round at the second man's face. A magic circle slammed in to his face breaking his nose and knocking him on his back. With his right side now clear Garand used his pistol hand to push against the back side of Laevateinn's blade. With his superior leverage and strength he pushed his attacker's blade away. The attack now broken, Garand followed up with a strong kick to the Mage's abdomen forcing him back.

The PMC took a few steps back. Moving away from his attackers, He growled like an angry dog as the two men prepared to renew their assault. Together they charged him from the front. He raised his pistol and fired a round at them placing a magic shield in front of him. However the Mage's easily by passed it. Then without explanation Garand dawned shark toothed grin and tossed Laevateinn over his shoulder as if he was giving up. Standing up strait he placed his hands on his hips and leered at the two mages. Just as they were about to strike he swayed to the left, a single blur streaked past him. In what seemed like a single flash of steal both men dropped to the ground, their Barrier Jackets ripped open at the chest, Signum standing over them.

"Thank you for looking after us," the sword knight said with relief.

"It's not a problem. How's the head injury?" Garand inquired.

"It is nothing significant, one of the advantages of being a Wolkenritter."

"Really? Makes me kind'a jealous," he admitted with a chuckle even though he did not believe her assurance. He considered telling her to sit down and stay out of the fight, but he knew she was far to stubborn for such advice.

Signum let a small snicker slip pass her lips as she rolled her eyes in response.


	15. Chapter 15

Author's notes: Recently I lost a family member, so I've decided to dedicate this story to him. I'll be putting the dedication at the top of the first chapter. I will also be going back and rechecking all my editing on it as well as the other earlier chapters. I'll post them all together once the editing is done.

Signum looked around, more than a little confused. The fact her head was still throbbing did not do anything to help, "What's going on?"

"Not much," Garand replied in a nonchalant manner, "The base is under attack," he pointed his thumb at the two mages Signum has dispatched, "From the looks of things these jack asses seem to be looking for something. Any idea what might be important enough here to pull a raid like this?"

Signum glanced towards the man she had been tasked to acquire, "I would have thought they were after him. It would seem though; he was not their only objective."

"Was?" Garand asked looking back to the man he had tried to rescue, "Fuck," the man had been blown in half. Everything from his waist down was gone, destroyed when the rear of the car had first exploded. The PMC had not noticed his injuries in his haste to move to cover. Garand checked his watch, "Something's wrong. Alert Mage's should have gotten here by now."

Signum looked to the sky, "Your right," she thought for a moment. Coming to a realization she sent out a telepathic message for assistance but received no reply. Trying once more she still received no answer, "Our coms are being jammed. It would seem we are on our own."

"Then we should destroy the jammer. Any clue where the source is?" Garand asked.

"Es ist aus, die unter die Headquarters Gebäude," [It is coming from under the Headquarters building.] Laevateinn informed them.

Garand raised an eyebrow, "That doesn't sound right. A jammer able to cover an entire base should be big, bulky, usually truck mounted. Why the hell would the jamming be coming from inside HQ?"

"Unbekannt," [Unknown] The knight's device answered.

"The reason doesn't matter right now. At the moment we need to stop the source and signal for help," Signum said as Garand returned her scabbard to her and she reattached it to her belt.

"Roger that, first though I need my rifle. We should also leave Vita with the local forces," Garand advised as he picked Vita up off the ground cradling her in his arms.

The gun fire around the base suddenly intensified as the Mage's of the reserve unit began to counter attack in a coordinated assault, quickly placing the enemy infantrymen in check. Though the enemy was plentiful, they had spread themselves thin. As a result they could not push the TSAB Mage's back only hold them in place. The situation though, worked both ways and TSAB could not gain ground either, due to insufficient personnel. In order tip the battle in their favor, the defensive units needed the Alert Mage's.

It was a short jog to Garand's truck and by some small luck they did not encounter any hostile troops. The big man quickly set about readying his equipment but not before gently placing Vita down in the bed of the vehicle. As he slipped on his plate carrier he heard Enfield call out to him.

"Mr. Garand!" The instructor shouted, "Do you know what the hell is going on? Why do these people have military grade firearms?"

"Someone screwed up that's how," he told the TSAB veteran an angry snarl as he pulled out his XCR rifle and loaded a magazine into it. Garand felt out right furious that 'his weapons' had been handed off to an unknown and illegal organization. He wanted to vent that anger badly and all he could think about was killing the 'Bad Guys', "I need you to look after a casualty Sargent Major," he said pointing his thumb over his shoulder at Vita. Garand instantly noticed a displeased look sweep over the Sargent Major's face.

Signum noticed this too, "Is something wrong Sargent Major?"

"No ma'am," he replied directing the same look at Signum, "We'll keep your friend safe."

The man's expression bothered Signum but she had to put it aside for now, "Let's go Garand," she instructed.

"Yes ma'am."

Garand followed Signum into the main building. Inside it was silent. The only sounds they could hear were from the fighting outside. Bodies were strung about the reception area of the building. Visitors and TSAB officers alike were slain without enough time to even face their attackers. All of them had been killed using magic. The attacks left the bodies with an array of damages including, burns, blunt force trauma and lacerations. Although magic was intended as a non-lethal form of combat, it was still a weapon system like any other. In the hands skilled practitioner it could kill with the same ease as any firearm.

Signum led Garand on a rush directly towards the basement guided by her device to where the jamming was coming from. As they proceeded they stayed mindful of every door and corner, prepared for the possibility of an ambush. However, they encountered no hostiles only the dead. It was clear the enemy had taken the same path they were on judging from the bodies and battle damage that had been left in their wake. As they proceeded into the basement still they had not encountered any of the Mage's that had attacked the base. It was beginning to appear that if they proceeded deeper, they would find themselves overwhelmed by a surprise attack. However, neither Signum nor Garand felt that would be any significant problem, thanks to their military issue confidence.

As the two grew closer to the source of the jamming Laevateinn was able to give more precise directions that led them to a room directly under the center of the base. Stopping at the door to this room Garand pressed his back against the wall on the left side of it, while Signum took position directly behind him. Checking the security panel next to the door Garand discovered it was locked. He signaled this information to Signum by pointing to the lock and giving her the thumbs down. To enter the room a dynamic breach would be necessary. Already knowing what needed to be done, the knight moved to the front of the door. It was a standard security door, nothing she could not handle. Signum drew her blade and Garand nodded to her signaling his readiness. With a single downward sweep Signum cut the door away from its hinges. Then with all the force she could muster without the use of magic, the woman kicked the door inwards throwing it into the room.

Garand swung around the door frame into the left side of the room. Directly to his front was a single Mage who was raising his staff to fire at him but before the man could fire Garand fired three rounds directly in the center of his chest. All three punctured his Barrier Jacket destroying his heart and lungs. A second mage on his right tried to fire at him but Signum darted into the room. Swinging at the second Mages hands she disarmed him. Then with a second attack she cut a wound into his chest neutralizing him. After confirming no one else was in the room Signum stepped over to what appeared to be a bank of security consoles and examined it.

"You sure this is the right place Sig?" Garand asked as he moved to watch the door, "I don't see anything that looks like a jammer."

Signum started typing commands into the console, "I know. Something's strange here. These are security terminals but they are separate from the rest of the bases grid."

"Isn't that normal? You know encase someone cuts the power."

"No, I mean this room isn't set up to monitor the base. It's set up for something different," after a few more moments of entering commands she discovered what the room was monitoring, "Damn, Garand there's a Jar under the base."

"A Jar?" Garand asked not understanding her statement.

"It's a Vault for storing Lost Logia."

"I thought the L.L. Vault was under TSAB Headquarters?"

"That's just for show, only low risk items are kept there. The genuinely dangerous relics are kept in places like this. Hidden Vaults called 'Jar's' are scattered all over Mid-Childa in top secret locations. No one person knows where they all are or what's in them. This place seems to be one of them," entering a few more commands she located a control system for the jamming system, "The jamming is part of the Jar's defense systems. It prevents any one from detecting the radiant magic created by the items inside. It also prevents any one from teleporting in or out," after making a few corrections to the system she joined Garand at the door, "The intruders tampered with the system to create a jamming signal covering the entire base but I've returned the system to normal. I've also opened the way into the Jar."

"Are we going to wait for back up or route them ourselves?" Garand asked with a smirk.

"You can't guess?" Signum replied returning his smirk, "I'm on point watch my back."

"Always do," Garand replied assertively.

Signum and Garand exited the room and moved down the corridor a few feet to where there had once been a wall. Now however, there were a set of elevator doors. With the push of a button Signum opened them and the two boarded. Just as she was about to hit the down button Garand stopped her.

"Hang on, if we ride the elevator down they'll know we're coming. I got a better idea," Garand crouched down and pulled open a maintenance hatch in the floor exposing the shaft below, "We'll take the fun way down."

After tossing a lit glow stick from his utility pouch down the shaft, he jumped through the opening, Signum quickly followed. The two went into free fall through the shaft, which seemed to be several hundred meters deep. It was several seconds before they could see the glow stick at the bottom. Once it was in view they Signum grabbed hold of the drag handle on the back of Garand's plate carrier and used a short burst of flight magic to break their fall. Feet now firmly planted on the bottom of the shaft Garand pointed to the door and made a small slashing motion with his hand signaling Signum to cut open the door and rush in. She nodded in reply. Garand readied his rifle as the knight readied her sword. Signum slashed the door in an X shaped pattern ripping through the steel doors. As the pieces of the door fell aside she rushed into a hall on the other side while Garand covered her. Signum paused a moment beyond the doors. There was nothing present no people, no equipment, only a stark empty grey concrete hall that was poorly lit by emergency lighting. She gave Garand the thumbs up and he joined her. Together they moved down the hall to its end weapons at the ready weary of any possible traps.

Waiting for them at the far side at the end of the passage was a locked door embedded in a wall. Something was off about it though. It seemed different from the hallway itself. The architecture was all wrong. Both the wall and the door mounted in it were to elaborately craft. The wall was dark blue with black trim and markings with some gold highlights added in the form of decorative designs and what looked to be words. It was a contradiction to the plane concrete passage that connected to it.

"That," Garand said with a pause, "Is a very fancy looking door."

Signum walked up to the door and looked it over with caution, "This is from ancient Bleka," she told him, slightly surprised, "The text here says this is an air lock."

"Airlock? You mean this is a space ship?" Garand asked trying not to sound excited.

"It's possible, but I'm more concerned with what is inside. Whatever is in here we can't allow these men to acquire it."

"Agreed, so how do we open it?" Garand asked knocking on the door.

"They normally open automatically for authorized personnel but TSAB should have set up an access console," Signum looked to the right of the door and saw a small pedestal with wires running to an open panel in the door. The pedestal its self, had a key pad but it had been smashed, "This is going to be a problem."

"Think you can cut through it?"

"Maybe, not in one strike though," she placed her hand on the door and suddenly it slid open revealing dark hallway. Signum stepped back in surprise.

"I guess you've been here before?"

Signum hesitated for a moment as a feeling of dread started to bubble up from deep within her mind, "I don't know," she paused and took the time to push away her feelings and refocus on the objective, "It doesn't matter mater right now, let's go," she instructed leading the way into the darkness. Once inside the door sliding closed behind them.


	16. Chapter 16

The hall on the other side of the door was wide, big enough to drive a large truck through and barely lit. The only source of light, were two long lengths of floor mounted track lighting. This proved just bright enough to illuminate a radius of only a few centimeters around the lengthy glowing lines. The air was still, cold and filled with an ominous distant hum. Once Signum and Garand were clear of the entrance, the door clanked shut behind them. Without looking back they pressed on. As they continued, singular glass panels five meters tall on each side of the hall suddenly lit up. The new light source revealed the sections of wall to be Stained Glass windows made up of random geometric patterns and a wide array of colors. Strangely, shadows of the two of them were somehow being flawlessly projected onto the opposite side of the glass it was almost like someone was on the other side mimicking their every movement.

Garand approached one of the stain glass windows and touched it with his gloved hand, "What's up with this place," he said tapping the glass with his finger.

"I don't know, but we need to hurry," Signum responded calmly. However, in truth she was anxious. She felt as if this was not a place she should be. Her gut demanded that she turn around and run away but she could not. If she did there was no telling what damage the Mage's inside could with whatever secrets were hidden here. She had to continue forward no matter how she felt.

As they moved on, the windows to their backs shut off and the next pair in line turned on in succession. They walk on through the hall for nearly five minutes before reaching another door that opened as soon as they approached it. Moving through it, the door then slid closed behind them. As it did the shadows on the last two stain glass windows looked into the hall at each other and spawned wide, white, open mouth smiles before vanishing along with all the light in the hall.

The next area they found themselves in was pitched black. Garand took a single cautious pace forward. The lone foot step echoed within this new chamber. Squeezing down on the vertical fore grip of his rifle he briefly activated his weapon light. A narrow beam of red light shone from the flash light illuminating a small portion of the darkness. He scanned the cavernous room with beam of light then turned it off. The room they were now in was large, open and there seemed to be evenly spaced pillars throughout its length. Garand moved to the right a few feet, towards a pillar and knelt down behind it pointing his weapon into the darkness. Signum soon followed after him. As they paused behind the pillar light slowly began to fill the chamber. Eventually, as the rooms built in illumination filled it completely, they were able make out the entirety of their surroundings.

The floor seemed to be a white marble trimmed in gold. The pillars Garand had seen earlier were a white stone carved in a manner reminiscent of roman architecture and reached high to the ceiling, nearly four stories up. On the walls were macabre paintings depicting images of joy, pain and death. Lastly, between the pillars were large cylinders of glass filled with a translucent, green liquid that glowed eerily. Signum looked down the full length of the grand chamber and found it to be about the length of a football field. At the far end she could see a large balcony and a set of stairs leading up to it. Additionally, in the center of the room there was a second set of stairs, these led down.

The Sword Knight suddenly found herself absently stepping away from cover and out into the middle of the great hall. She continued to examine her surroundings, as she did Signum could hear whispers coming from all around her. Voices of people, there was guarded laughter, false excitement, lies, and fear in their tones. Yet, she could also here the clammier of celebration? An image suddenly flashed in front of her eyes. All at once, stretched out before her was a grand ball, what seemed like hundreds of people in their best cloths toasting to some unknown good news. She took a few additional, vacant steps forward.

"Sig!" Garand whispered urgently trying to gain her attention.

She could not here him. Signum's mind had swept her away to a different time and place beyond his reach. Abruptly the image changed. She now stood atop the balcony at the far end of the room looking down on the party.

"Look at all these fools Signum," a cold male voice spoke from behind her, "They gladly throw their sons and daughters into my little corner of hell just so they can raise their status or advance their own ambitions," he snorted, "But that's fine as long as I keep getting fresh materials I don't care. Oh but don't worry I will never neglect you or the other Wolkenritter you are, of course, my precious favorites."

"Sig, snap out of it!" Garand called again louder this time. Suddenly a mage bearing a sword rushed out from behind one of the pillars and leaped towards Signum ready to cleave her in two, "Sig! Wake the fuck up!" He shouted swinging his rifle around to target the mage.

Signum still caught in the images, continued to listen to the cold voice, "This evening will be very memorable today I will unveil my greatest work."

She felt the sensation of a hand on her shoulder, caressing it roughly. The knight shuddered and wanted to run but found her feet refusing her commands. She wanted to object but could say nothing. The hand slipped forward across her chest.

"However, as great as my final work maybe you will always be my greatest treasure, my lovey and obedient Knight."

Signum suddenly cried out at the top of her lungs in a mix of rage, fear, and disgust. She drew her sword in a violent and brutally powerful swing, while spinning on her heals. As the mage Garand was aiming at reached the pink haired woman he was struck at the waist by her blade and was sliced clean in two. He crashed to the ground in and eviscerated heap of blood a gore. Signum breathed heavily, bordering on hyper ventilation, when she finally regained her senses.

Garand rushed towards her, "Sig are you alright what the hell were you doing?"

"I," she stopped, "I don't know. I can't remember," she told him honestly, placing a hand on the side of her head. As quickly as the images and sensations had come they were gone again leaving no traces other than a lingering torrent of emotion. Steadying herself she looked around, "I'm sorry it looks as if I have alerted our enemies to our presence."

"Oh well," Garand replied with a grin, "I prefer the direct approach any way," though his voice was full of bravado, he was actually concerned about Signum's wellbeing. Sadly, circumstances being what they were he could not afford the time to address her apparent distress.

Signum and Garand soon found themselves being rushed from all sides. The knight and the PMC moved back to back, covering each other. The two of them could feel one another, calm their mind and body. As the Mage's closed in, time seemed to crawl forward and the two front line fighters unconsciously matched their breathing, creating a shared rhythm. Together they took in a single deep breath. In that single moment time seemed to stop and stretch out infinitely. They took in every detail of their enemies and the surroundings. The attacking mages classes, location, number, and current disposition. Their minds instantly logged every detail for use in the next few seconds. Then all at once, time exploded to life.

Garand fired a three round burst into the chest of a charging close quarters mage dropping him instantly. Then, he retrained his weapon this time settling his dot sight on a Mid-Style mage preparing an attack spell. With a second, precise squeeze of the trigger he placed two rounds in the man's throat.

At the same time Signum knocked a ranged attack spell aside with her sword as two lance wheedling Mage's rushed her head on. One of the two spearmen over took his partner and thrust his weapon towards her belt buckle. Signum swayed to the right, Garand feeling her movements matched hers. The man's spear streaked past Signum and Garand. She snatched the weapon with her free hand. Clamping down on it with a death grip, she swung her sword high and made a single stroke that cut down and across the spearman's shoulder inflicting a deep wound into his upper chest. She pushed the dead mage into the path of the second forcing him to deviate from his original path and strait for where Signum wanted him. The second spearman was now funneled into her right side. With the tip of her blade pointed down she swung her weapon in a counter clock wise motion forcing the Spear up and away from her. The Spearman now exposed she lunged forward and drove her blade clean through his Barrier Jacket into his heart and out his back.

Just as Signum finished her two attackers Garand was faced off against an additional five close combat Mages who were in a big hurry to close in on him. He fired a short burst of fully automatic rounds at three of them but only managed to kill two and injure a third. Unable to eliminate the remaining two before they reached him, he had to act accordingly. Ducking low he pushed his left shoulder into Signum's back. This signaled a carefully choreographed set of movements. Pivoting on his left foot and staying low Garand swung his right foot around bringing him to a full 180 degrees from his original position. At the same time, Signum rolled to her left across Garand's back just in time to bring the full weight of her blade down onto one of the CQB Mages heads splitting it in two.

Garand now found himself squaring off against a single Mid-Style Mage he quickly fired a three round burst however the Mage had enough sense to duck for cover behind a pillar at the sight of Garand's rifle. Just as his first target took cover a second appeared to his right moving towards his first target. Garand snapped his weapon over to his new target and fired a four round burst into the new Mages side. Two of the rounds punched through his Barrier Jacket, dropping the Mage to the ground in the open ground between pillars. The wounded man lay on the floor struggling to breath as his lungs began to collapse. Garand's first target then opened fire on him with weak but rapidly executed shooting spells. As the rounds struck Garand they were quickly dissipated by his body armor. He could have returned fire but Garand knew what was going on. From the corner of his eye he saw a third mage rush towards the injured one. Garand quickly fired a long burst at the would-be rescuer putting nearly ten rounds into him.

At the same time Signum was facing off against the remaining two Mages on her side. The closet swung his sword at the left side of her head; the second side stepped to her right. From their perspective the Knight appeared to be in a bad situation she could only block one of the attacks not both. It was executed exactly as they intended. Unfortunately for them their attack was nothing she had not seen before. Raising her left arm Signum blocked the strike to her head using the armor on her fore arm as a shield. At the same time she reversed her grip on her sword and drove the tip of the blade through the other mages collar bone and into the floor pinning him in place. Speedily she pulled her sword out of the man on the floor and swung her blade across the other man's neck practically severing his head.

"Pillar!" Garand called as he pressed his right shoulder into Signum's back.

Again the two danced around each other. Signum sheathed her sword. Then, at the same time, she triggered a single cartridge. Pivoting low the Knight drew Leveiteinn across her body. The blade separated in to segments and snaked towards the pillar the Mage was concealed behind. It coiled around pillar and Mage alike. Signum pulled on the hilt of her weapon with all her strength and the deadly viper constricted. There was only a brief scream as the Mage and stone decoration were shredded to pieces.

At the same time Garand had swung around and immediately saw the injured Mage on the floor trying to stand up. With his weapon at point blank distance, he tapped the trigger sending two well-placed rounds into the man's chest. The two combatants then took pause and waited, observing for any other signs of additional attacks. When nothing came for them Signum and Garand lowered their weapons.

"I love it when they go down fighting," Garand said looking around. As he did the big man took note of the fact Signum had followed through with all her attacks and killed her opponents. Something was clearly wrong with her. Although she was not the type to shy away from killing her adversaries, Signum preferred not to do so. Ever since Hayate had become her master she had personally resolved to not end a life unnecessarily. For a woman of her strength and skill this was an easy promise to keep. However, these mages had been rather weak. She should have been able to take them down without killing them. There was no way nothing was troubling her. He needed to ask at least once while they had a spare moment, "You sure you're okay Sig? This isn't like you."

"I, I don't know I just, I can't really even," Signum tried to articulate an answer but her mind was suddenly racing again, "It's this place. Garand I don't think I should be here," she said with uncharacteristic unease.

Sometimes, Garand hated being right, "Tell ya what, when we're done here we'll go get shit faced," he told her with a smirk trying to help her return to her normal self.

Signum placed her hand over her face and messaged her temples, "After all this, I think I may need exactly that," she replied feeling a little better.

Garand walked over to the mage he had injured just before he made the first switch with Signum, "So why don't you tell us a story," he began as he crouched down in front of the mage who was holding his hand over a bloody wound in his gut, "What are you after?"

The man glared intensely at Garand, "Fuck you!" The Mage snapped his sword up and swung it at Garand, but the PMC was faster than his swing. Snapping his weapon up, he fired his last few rounds into the Mage's chest.

"I'd bet these guys were here just to buy time," he told Signum standing back up, "Whatever they're after it's further in and it's important to these guys," Garand looked down the length of the hall, "So basement or upstairs?" He inquired referring to the balcony and the stairwell leading down.

"Basement," Signum promptly answered.

"That was fast, any particular reason?"

"Most people do not keep super weapons in their closet," she told Garand managing a small smirk as she started walking towards the stairs leading down. The tall man snickered at her explanation, then, followed after her. As they descended the stairs Garand kept careful watch over Signum for any additional signs of odd behavior.


	17. Chapter 17

Authors Notes: Sorry for the wait I went away from home for over a month and wouldn't you know it? My lap top shit the bed. Any way I hope you enjoy and don't forget to comment, especially if you notice a mistake somewhere.

Signum led the way down the staircase to the floor below. This new area was cold, stark and sterile. The passageways were white, trimmed with stainless steel. Everything appeared clean and carefully preserved. On the walls were signs written in a language Garand did not recognize that seemed to be used for directions.

"Sig, what is this place?" He asked scanning the halls with his eyes and weapon.

The knight glanced over to one of the signs posted next to a door, then read it aloud, "Operating Theater 1, it seems this is a hospital?" She speculated. The knight then noticed another, larger sign a little further ahead. Closer inspection revealed it to be a map of the facility. Carefully, she read it over, "No, it's a research facility," She continued to read until she found what she thought might be relevant, "Here," she said pointing to one of the words written on the map, "Specimen and Device storage. This is the only room that stands out."

"Alright, lead the way."

As they moved on Signum took care to keep Garand at her back. While she trusted him and even felt a kind of closeness to the man, she was not willing to expose any weakness to him, especially not at a time such as this. Her mind was still in turmoil, this place was affecting her significantly. It was unpleasantly familiar but every time she felt a memory bubble to the surface of her consciousness it suddenly and violently popped before any real images appeared, leaving her with only emotional chaos. Her mind continuously foiled her attempts to recall the visions she had in the great hall above. It seemed that there was nothing she could do about her unease. Except for one thing, focus on the mission and get the hell out of this place as soon as possible.

At the same time, the further they went the more Garand was nagged by a bad feeling. They should have encountered more enemy Mage's or at least traps but it seemed like only one person may have come this far, as he had speculated earlier. The PMC glanced at Signum's back. To add to things, Signum was clearly unsteady, right up to the point where her ability to hide it was quickly degrading. Although it seemed she had not realized this. This place had to be the source of her problems, he was certain. It was to clean, like the facilities used to make the chemical weapons that had nearly cost him his life the year before. He knew she wanted to keep strong and push on and he respected that choice, for now. There would be time to deal with her troubles after they finished. Garand wanted to trust, to believe that she would be fine even though he knew better. He had seen enough troubled soldiers to spot signs of PTSD. However, he was no doctor, just because he thought it looked like PTSD did not mean it was.

Signum stopped in front of a partially open door with signs of having been forced open. They had found the enemies final destination. Garand slowly opened the door the rest of the way and silently slipped inside, the pink haired knight right behind him. What they found was a huge warehouse filled with specimen tanks. Inside each was a device of unusual make that seemed to be a mix of fire arms and edged weapons. Each one had a three digit serial number. On the opposite side of the room was a more gruesome sight. What appeared to be fleshy unidentifiable blobs made up of human skin and bone, floated in a preservative liquid. At the base of each tank was another three digit number that seemed to correspond to a matching device on the other side of the room. Along with the device number the biological samples were accompanied by a separate serial of their own.

Garand wanted to make a comment about this place being akin to a house of horrors, but he had to refrain when he noticed another door at the far end of the chamber had also been forced open, "I'll make entry hang back until I need back up," he instructed in a hushed voice.

"I should go in first," Signum argued firmly, "I can better handle any Mage that may be inside."

"No, hang back," he repeated looking her in the eyes. Garand did not need to say anything further. Signum realized the tall man had noticed her current emotional state and mentally admitted he was correct in telling her to hang back. The way she was now Signum could easily make a bad judgment call and endanger herself or Garand. It was important that a cool head prevail during the next few seconds, at least until the fighting started.

"Very well," she responded in a deceptively clam monotone.

Carefully, the PMC approached the door and crept inside the poorly lit room, his weapon at the ready and all his senses on alert. This new room was the same as the first with only one small exception, the tubes in this room were all widely spaced and it appeared that greater care had been taken to preserve the contents. Garand also noticed that all the devices in this room had serial numbers that began with nine. Step by step, he steadily advanced into the room. Then he heard the sound of a crate being opened then closed off to his left. The man stopped and quickly aimed his weapon in the direction of the sound. His line of sight was blocked by the sample containers, so he waited in calm silence. Soon, footsteps moved towards the center of the room. Tracking the sound with the barrel of his weapon he watched for the person to emerge.

Then a male Mage wearing the same Barrier Jackets as the others appeared from behind the specimen tanks, his face concealed by a one hole balaclava. When he turned to proceed to the exit he came face to face with Garand. In one hand he held a large back pack, in the other a broad sword.

"Stay where you are!" The PMC shouted surprising the Mage, "Place the bag on the ground, deactivate your device and step back."

The Mage snickered from behind his mask once the surprise of Garand's appearance subsided.

"I will not ask again. Drop the bag, shut off you device and back away," the PMC immediately began assessing the threat to his front. The Mage's left hand had a firm grip on the bag and his right held his swords tip towards Garand but angled down at the ground. His right leg was placed behind his left and he had shifted his weight slightly aft. In less than a second, through the Mage's body language, the PMC had determined his intent to rush him and force his way through.

The Mage sighed deeply and ever so slightly began shifting his posture forward, "Do you really. . ."

Two loud bangs echoed in the room as Garand fired a pair rounds into the man's chest. The masked Mage seemed to lose all the energy in his legs and flopped onto the ground face first dropping the bag in the process. He lay motionless but Garand did not approach him. Instead he trained his sights on the Mages head and fired an additional round. However the moment before he squeezed the trigger the Mage rolled away behind cover, his collapse had been a rouse. Garand flipped his fire selector to full auto and waited. Suddenly a broad sword shot towards him from his right side. The PMC dove forward as it ripped past him and slammed into one of the device storage units smashing it into scrap. Just as Garand was about to return to his feet the Mage appeared above him and drove his sword towards his head. The PMC rolled left onto his back and pointed his weapon up at the masked man firing a four round burst forcing him back.

Garand used the opportunity to rush to his feet and moved behind one of the biological sample containers. From that position he fired again at the Mage who also ducked in amongst the sample containers. Covered by the giant vials the masked Mage ducked and weaved his way towards Garand as he was repeatedly fired at. He quickly closed in on the PMC and in mere moments he was in front of the tall man. With a strong swing of his blade the Masked Mage made a horizontal slash at Garand's chest. At the same time the PMC released his grip on his weapon letting it hang from its one point sling. Snapping his right hand to the small of his back he produced his trench knife. With it he blocked the sword and counter attacked with his left hand, punching the Mage in the side of his jaw. Immediately the Masked Man responded by kicking Garand in the chest slamming him backwards. As the PMC was thrown back he crashed through one of the biological sample containers and landed on his back with the strange fleshy blob squishing beneath him.

The Mage quickly moved to follow up on his attack. Suddenly, from his left side a razor sharp bladed whip shot towards him forcing him to abort his advance. As the whip snapped back the way it came, Signum charged the Mage swinging her sword with a two handed grip. The masked Mage quickly raised his sword to block her strike. The two blades clashed and sparks of Manna danced from where their two weapons collided, lighting up the dimly lit room. Instantly Signum drew her weapon away and pivoted on her front foot at a blinding speed, bringing her behind the man. She struck out at him again bringing her sword high and swinging it down at his left shoulder. The Masked man spun on his heels and back stepped away from Signum narrowly dodging her attack. The two fighters squared off waiting to see how the other would proceed.

The masked Mage slowly stepped towards his pack, when he made a grab for the bag with his empty hand. Signum immediately rushed him attacking his unarmed right side. The Mage withdrew his hand from the pack but did not bring his sword hand to bear against Signum. The Knight was about to deliver a winning blow when suddenly a second sword materialized in his empty hand. He pushed the tip towards Signum. She quickly dodged by stepping back and to the right but was still caught the blades edge. It sliced through her Barrier Jacket and made a shallow gash in her skin. Signum quickly prepared to counter but stopped when she realized his second sword had disappeared. The Knight quickly processed what she had just seen and concluded he could summon up a second sword at will.

This short instant of thought gave the male swordsman the chance to grab his pack and sling it onto his shoulders. He quickly turned and sprinted to the doorway leading out of the room. Garand who by now was back on his feet quickly cut him off and fired a long burst of rounds across his path forcing the Mage to stop. This allowed Signum to catch up and attack him. The Masked Mage swung his weapon high in a horizontal slash aimed at her neck. The knight ducked low, the man's sword passing over her head. She drove her sword towards the center of his chest. Suddenly his empty hand was filled with a sword again. He quickly used it to knock her blade away. This time though she had been ready for such a development letting the momentum created when he knocked her weapon aside she spun herself in a full three sixty slamming her blade into the man's right side throwing him off balance and cutting a wound into his flesh.

Garand quickly fired a three round burst at the Mage as he tried to regain his balance. When the bullets struck his torso he was knocked off his feet. Both Signum and the PMC carefully approached him. Suddenly the room filled with thick white smoke.

"Fuck!" Garand barked as he scrambled to activate the thermal imaging on his goggles, "He's heading for the hall!" He told Signum as he led her on a mad sprint though the cloud.

The two of them made it out of the storage area just in time to see the Mage bolt down the hall. Together they gave chase, Garand firing as they went. The Mage led them on a dash through the complex weaving through hall after hall eventually their pursuit led them to what seemed to be a large hanger.

"Garand!" Signum called.

"Roger!" the PMC responded understanding what she intended to do.

The knight used a brief and powerful burst of flight magic throwing herself forward, overtaking the masked mage. Turning mid-air, she faced her enemy. In a blink her toes touched the ground but only long enough to thrust herself forward, towards the mage. Signum swung her sword across her body targeting the man's left side. Her opponent tried to dodge to his right. However Garand fired a short burst of full auto winging the mages right arm forcing him to confront the knight. The two sword wielders collided trying to overpower each other with brute force.

Garand rushed up behind the masked mage struggling with Signum. The PMC drove the steel but plate of his weapon into the back of the mages head. However the blow did not prove effective enough to knock the man out. The masked mage leaped backwards slamming himself into the tall man, knocking Garand onto his back in the process and passing above him. The PMC stayed on his back and swapped magazines while Signum leaped over him. The sword knight raised her sword and swung in downwards aiming for his left shoulder. The enemy mage blocked the swing with his weapon holding it above his head while at the same time he materialized his second sword and used it to attack Signum's left leg.

Signum suddenly heard a metallic clack. The sound prompted her to dive and roll away from the mage avoiding his attack entirely. With the knight out of the mage's line of sight he now saw Garand lying prone in front of him. The masked enemy was standing in a large open space with little cover, an easy target for a rifleman. The PMC squeezed back the trigger and held it down. Out of desperation the mage used his two swords as a shield as the high caliber 7.62 rifle rounds sped towards him. The projectiles hammered the mage over and over. The impacts from the rifle rounds smashed through one of the mages swords breaking it in two. They slammed into his body causing internal injury and occasionally tossing out plumes of blood. He tried in desperation to get to cover but Garand kept all his rounds on target even as the Mage slipped behind a large metallic crate. Just as the mage ducked into cover Garand's rifle magazine emptied it's last round.

As the PMC reloaded, Signum moved in on the Mage, proceeding with caution. As the knight approached she noticed a small trail of blood, no surprise there. Barrier Jacket or not, taking 30 rounds of Anti-Magic ordinance is not something that any mage can endure unscathed.

"Surrender!" Signum ordered as she circled around the crate.

Suddenly a metal tendril shot towards her striking her in the chest knocking her backwards. As she staggered and recovered her balance all across the hanger other large crates burst open and from them came Belkan gadgets still combat ready even after hundreds of years of storage. The sword knight quickly countered cutting the machine in two.

"Sig he's heading to the other side of the hanger!" Garand barked, "I'll hold here you get after him!"

"Roger," The knight quickly skirted around the mindless drones chasing after the masked mage.

She followed the man to the far end as he ran through a large doorway clutching his side. Entering the new area she found a huge cylindrical featureless room with a high ceiling and no other exits. In the center was the masked Mage, "Surrender!" Signum ordered, "You can't escape!"

The sword knight carefully looked over the man taking note of the bullet wounds in his right shoulder, left abdomen and one that appeared to be a through and through in his right arm. With such wounds it was a stretch that the mage was even able to stand. All the same Signum let caution prevail. She had seen soldiers with far worse injuries lash out at their enemies with lethal efficacy. The man looked at the knight squarely in the eyes and dispelled his swords.

"Deactivate your device and place your hands on your head!" Signum ordered.

The masked mage slowly and silently complied, shutting down his device. Then, the floor began to glow and a magic circled appeared beneath him. It was a teleportation spell being generated by the installation. Signum charged forward but in a flash of light he and what he had taken, were gone without trace.

"A teleporter?" Signum questioned both angry and confused. She quickly darted out of the room and called out, "Garand," the knight shouted frantically looking about the hanger for the PMC. She saw the remains of 5 destroyed gadgets but did not see her partner, "Garand, he's escaped to the surface!"

"What!" The tall man barked, "How?" he asked poking up from behind one of the large metallic spheres

"A teleportation system built into the facility," She explained running past him bound for the exit.

"Then he could be anywhere! What happened to the jammer?" Garand shouted as he chased after her.

"I don't know it should be working, but judging from the power created by the device I doubt he got further than the base above us!"

As they sprinted back through the halls a single flickering light in an open doorway caught Signum's attention. She intended to ignore it, to simply carry on but as if acted on by some external influence, she found her legs ceasing their motions in front of the door. Garand continued a few feet past her before stopping and turning around.

"Sig?" He called, "Come on we need to hurry."

The Knight made no response as she slowly stepped into the room. Inside, it was devoid of any equipment or furnishing save a single flickering light above a stainless steel chair. The seat had restraints for arms, legs, and head. On its surface were ancient rusty discolorations, just barely visible. Signum immediately recognized these blemishes on the stainless steel chair, as very old blood stains. She slowly reached out to it.

Suddenly she could her muffled screams coming from all around her. As the sounds grew louder, the dried stains on the chair became more plentiful and fresh. Blood dripped and flowed in mass quantities to the floor and pooled into a mirror of red, disturbed only by a constant drip from the seat of the chair. The screams grew clearer to the point where she could recognize them, they were her own. Not only hers, but there were also those of Shamal, Vita, even Zafira. She covered her ears and closed her eyes, gritting her teeth trying to make the voices and the visions stop, just then as she had hoped they did. Releasing her ears she looked up at the chair again and standing behind it was a slender man in his late twenties. His hair was a well groomed, short, chestnut brown with matching eyes covered by a pair of corrective spectacles. A friendly smile that made your skin crawl slipped across his face, a crocodiles grin. Then he spoke holding out a single hand.

"Signum you've come back. Have a seat."

The Knight screamed her eye's filled with rage. She drew her sword and cut through the chair and the man who then vanished, a mere apparition of her mind. She continued to shout and scream all the while venting her rage on the chair hacking at it like a child throwing a tantrum.

The screams quickly brought Garand running into the room, "Sig what the fuck is going on?"

As soon as he entered the room Signum turned around and attacked the PMC. There was no recognition in her eyes. She could not see past the torrent of memories and emotions rushing through her mind. She blindly thrust her blade at Garand's chest. He narrowly dodged the attack by pivoting to his left. Signum quickly swung her sword to her right and struck Garand in the side. The attack would have cut him clean in half but his body armor stopped the blade. Quickly the PMC grabbed Signum's sword arm and dragged it into his armpit, gripping the limb tightly in place with all his strength. Then with all the force he could muster he took his free hand and slammed his fist into the side of her head.

The singular strike knocked her out cold. That had been too easy, Garand thought, but it was probably a result of the head trauma from earlier and her mental strain. Holding up the Knights weight he looked into her unconscious face with great concern. She had slipped into a flash back, Garand was convinced of this. He also knew one other thing something he did not want to think about. This could very well mean the end of her carrier and a steady spiral into depression. He wanted to believe she was strong enough to push through this but the mind is a thing that is easily broken and difficult to heal. To his dismay this was all something he had seen before. This time however, he was in a position that might prevent the worst case scenario from coming to pass and he would not let it slip by.

Signum dreamed a memory of her past. A fond recollection of before The Tome of the Night Sky was labeled The Book of Darkness. She was knelt down on the ground exhausted but happy.

"Signum, what are you so happy about?" A soft male voice asked with a chuckle, "Come on we need to get back," a tall figure in a blue Barrier Jacket held out a hand to the knight.

Signum tried to look at his face but the ancient memory had become too hazy to recall the man's face. Signum reached up and took his hand smiling back at him, "Thank you Joshua," she said as he helped her up.

As she felt herself lift off the ground the knight suddenly realized, to her dismay that she was on the verge of waking. Sure enough, the pink haired woman began to open her eyes as she was drawn back to the waking world. As her consciousness was restored it dawned on her that she was in motion, moving forward but did not feel her legs moving. She quickly realized she was being carried piggy back. When she realized this she tried to push away from the persons back but as soon as she straitened her posture she felt dizzy and was forced to abort her attempt to stand on her own.

"Garand?" She groaned her head still beating like a giant base drum.

"Awake are you?" He responded flatly hiding his concern for her wellbeing.

"Yes, but I feel like my head was run over by a truck," she admitted resting her fore head back onto his shoulder.

"Sorry about that, should have known better than to punch someone with a concussion in the head," he apologized.

When he apologized Signum's mind immediately recalled what had happened in the small room some minutes before. How she had lost control and attacked Garand. She tensed up at the memory, gripping the shoulder straps of the PMC's plate carrier. She was angry and disappointed in herself. She suddenly realized her cheeks were wet. She had been crying? Signum was certain the dream she woke from was the cause her tears. The knight quickly began to wipe the tears off with her right hand. As she did the woman suddenly stopped remembering it was Garand's back she was riding on. She braced herself for a, 'only the weak cry,' comment but he said nothing. No scolding full of bravado, no questions about if she was alright. Not so much as a sigh. The knight then recalled what he had promised earlier. If she sought help he would not pry into her problems any further. The sword knight let out a small, relieved sigh and wiped the last of her tears away.

"You really are a badger of a man Garand," she told him as her emotions settled.

The PMC furrowed his brow, "Well pardon me for being an angry hairy beast," he responded, "At least I'm not a certain irritable Wood Pecker," Garand added clearly making reference to Vita.

Signum smiled and chuckled as the image of Vita dressed in a Wood Pecker costume form vividly in her mind, "I really should not be laughing at that," She told him still grinning. The sword knight then made a small forced cough, "That aside could you please let me down I'm more than capable of walking on my own."

"No you're not," Garand corrected smartly.

"I am not some helpless damsel now put me down you oaf." The knight instructed as she tried to push away from his back again and break her legs free of his grasp. As she struggled she started to feel dizzy and nauseous and was forced to cease her attempts to free herself once again, "If you tell anyone about this. . ."

"Not a word shall pass my lips," he said with a half grin, "So that guy we ran into was that?" He inquired quickly changing topics.

Signum gave a small nod, "It was the same man I encountered after the bombing, the same one that destroyed the hanger."

"So all this is connected," Garand speculated, "I'll bet he was the one who stole my weapons to."

"You're probably right. However, this will be his last success, agreed?"

"Oh hell yes."


	18. Chapter 18

Before Garand and Signum emerged from the headquarters building, the tall PMC let his passenger down from his back. The sword knight was still thoroughly unsteady and was forced to use Garand as a crutch. The two exited the building. To their relief, they discovered TSAB Alert Mage's had arrived some time earlier and had secured the area. Standing outside a mobile command vehicle was Fate Harlaown. She was the current Alert Force Commander for the east section of the city and the base fell under her response envelope. The Enforcer was directing her men in the mop up the enemy forces when she noticed Signum out of the corner of her eye. The sight of her friend emerging from the building, apparently injured, automatically prompted her to call out to the knight.

"Signum, what happened?" She called hastily as she took a moment to go check on her friend.

Signum managed a small smile, "I'm alright but my head is spinning like crazy."

"I'll get a medic," Fate told her quickly waving over one of the EMT's.

"What do we tell Harlaown?" Garand whispered into the knight's ear.

Signum consider her options then answered, "The ring leader escaped with an unknown amount of Lost Logia, nothing more, nothing less."

"Roger," he responded as the medics arrived with a gurney. The PMC helped the Knight sit herself down on the mobile bed, with Fate's assistants.

"Are you alright Signum?" Fate asked taking note of the dried blood on the pink haired woman's brow.

"I'm fine Fate," she told her friend, "It's just a minor scratch," Signum assured her as the medic started to look her over.

"Harlaown," Garand called gesturing the woman to follow him a few paces away from Signum.

"What is it Mr. Garand?" She asked while approaching him.

"We found a Vault under the base. While there we encountered who we think is the ring leader of these jack holes," he told the Enforcer pointing with his thumb over his shoulder at some of the gunmen that were being loaded into a transport their hands restrained, "Unfortunately he escaped along with some Lost Logia. No idea how many though."

Fate folded her arms in a slow and concerned manner, "I'll send a team down to investigate. I'll need you to write up a full report of what happened, ASAP."

"Roger," Garand then leaned in close to Fate making her feel a little uncomfortable, "Signum has a concussion don't let her talk her way out of going to the hospital and don't advertise that you know about it. You know how she is," he politely requested.

Fate sighed a little as her discomfort was quickly replaced by concern for her friend, "Thank you for telling me Garand," the fact the man was showing concern towards their mutual friend slightly enhanced Fates opinion of the large man. Perhaps he did have a few good points.

When the tall man turned to leave he called out to the Alert Mage's in his loudest voice, "Nothing like an afternoon of killing bad guy's to round off your day, who wants to go for beer!" He shouted with a grin.

Fate sighed, on second thought maybe he was just an annoying drunkard. Turning back to Signum the young Enforcer noticed the knight had a smirk across her face while shaking her head. Fate was a little surprised at the knight's reaction, but deduced the man's behavior was something she was used to, that or she had hit her head far harder than she suspected.

"So how is she?" Fate asked the medic.

"She definitely has a concussion. It would be best for her to get a full check up at the hospital. Head trauma is not something to be taken lightly," the male medic instructed before moving on to the next casualty.

Just as Garand had assumed she would, Signum tried to stand up from the gurney. The enforcer quickly stopped her, "You heard the Medic you need to go to the hospital."

"He's over reacting, I'll be fine."

Fate folded her arms and frowned, "In that case if you're not going to the hospital then we should have Shamal look you over."

Signum froze in place and the image of a menacing smile across Shamal's face passed through her mind, "I'll go to the hospital," she promptly agreed sitting back down on the gurney.

Once she was again seated she suddenly felt dizzy again and decided to lie back before she toppled over. While Signum waited her turn to be loaded onto an ambulance The Knight idly watched Garand as he walked back towards the front gate. Fate noticed this almost right away and decided to use this chance to throw some questions at her friend.

"Signum," she began, "I've been wondering about this for a while now," the enforcer took a brief pause to reconsider how she wanted to word her question, "What do you really think of Garand?"

"What do I think of him?" Signum echoed looking to her close friend. She contemplated the question for a moment, "He's someone I can trust," she said firmly taking a brief glance in the PMC's direction, "He may come across as crude, but he's honest, keeps his word and he's reliable."

Fate folded her arms looking a little displeased with her description, "What about his advances?"

The knight thought she might bring up that subject, "I admit he has his moments, but he means well in his own way. Honestly compared to the other men I've had to work and interact with he's far better than most," a small scowl slipped across her face as she remembered the various men who had tried to 'conquer' her. Realizing her change in expression the knight quickly let go of the scowl, "As I said he has his flaws, but he's a good friend."

Fate sighed, she had been unsure what to expect from Signum's answer, but hearing that she got along with Garand left her feeling a little disappointed. Although she did admit to herself that feeling of disappointment may just be a result of her separate opinion of the man.

"Well if he gives you any trouble let me know, I'll help you however I can," the enforcer offered.

"That's fine, if he really causes me any problems I can just slap him in the back of the head. It's worked before," Signum told her with a small smile.

Fate returned the smile, mostly because the image of her friend smacking the badger of a man in the back of the head amused her. Just then one of the Enforcers subordinates approached her. It seemed Fate was needed elsewhere. She quickly said farewell to Signum and hurried off.

As she left, the question Fate had left in her wake continued to bounce around within Signum's mind. The first time she met the man, he had looked like an angry malnourished dog. The first thing he did when he saw Hayate and herself was attempt to kill them. Since then the two of them had argued, fought, laughed, gotten drunk and made up dozens of times. She knew things about him no one else knew just as he knew things about her. She was glad to count him among her friends.

Strangely, a small wave of anxiety suddenly washed through her mind and her feelings of unease began to resurface. Signum could not understand where this feeling was coming from. Over and over it bubbled up with in her, seemingly at random. Confusing her, tormenting her, she began to realize Garand had been right. She needed help if she was to work past this. Fortunately she had made an appointment with a professional just as the PMC had advised.

While Signum mulled through her own thoughts, Garand walked towards where he had left the body of the man he had tried to rescue. Once he reached the corpse the PMC methodically began searching the body for any information that might prove useful. However rummaging through the dead man's pockets proved fruitless. He had no money, no ID, nothing. This lead Garand to suspect his dead objective worked with an intelligence group of some kind.

Suddenly he was interrupted, "Stealing from the dead Mr. Garand?" A man asked in a falsified tone of disapproval.

"He's dead I doubt he'll complain Inspector Acous," Garand responded looking over his shoulder at the green haired inspector.

Acous crouched down next to the PMC, "Find anything?"

"Nothing obvious," he sighed.

The inspector methodically rechecked the body. He found a short slit cut into an inside seam of the man's coat. Sticking a finger inside the hidden pocket, he found nothing. The Inspector took a moment from his search to consider what the dead man might have done with the information he claimed to have had. Acous then realized the corpse was wearing a watch. Removing it, he examined the time piece. He noted small scratches on its back. Using a pocket knife he removed the back plate revealing a USB outlet.

"Well now this would be what we are after," Acous told Garand placing the watch in a sealable plastic bag, "He was also hiding something in the seam of his coat but it appears it was found and taken by our friendly insurgents," the Inspector stood up, "I'll look into the contents of the watch and let you know what I find," he told Garand as he walked away to investigate the rest of the scene.

* * *

Elsewhere Hayate was enjoying the company of a friend over a light lunch, not yet aware of what was happening at the reserve base. Sitting across from her was Carim Gracia, a woman who was like a sister to her.

Yagami rested her cup of tea back onto the table, "I'm sorry for just dropping in on you like this. I just needed some time away from the usual clatter of the base."

"It's fine Hayate," Carim assured her, "I can understand how you feel," she continued before taking a sip of her tea.

"Actually there was another reason I wanted to have lunch with you," the young officer admitted.

"Oh?"

Hayate took a moment to think concealing this by sipping some more of her tea, "Well I wanted to know if there is a Saints Church just outside the town of Old Mill," she asked plainly.

"Old Mill?" Carim confirmed.

"Yes."

With a simple wave of her hand Carim activated a holographic display that appeared between the two women, "Why did you need to know, if you don't mind me asking?"

"A new member of my unit is a follower of the Saints Church and is taking a trip to the area. He wanted to know if there was a chapel nearby." Hayate lied.

Carim nodded, "I'll have a look," the young woman entered the location provided by Hayate into the projection, a moment later she had an answer, "It seems there is no church located near Old Mill," Carim told her friend.

"Thank you Carim, I'll make sure to pass it along."

"You're welcome, I'm glad I could help."

Hayate had a bad feeling. Did this mean the church was involved? It could also mean some one was posing as the church. She needed confirmation. The only way to do that was to send someone in to investigate. She needed more information but she was starting to suspect that this was not about just a few stolen weapons. She decided to gently probe for more information on what might be happening with in the Saints Church.

"How are things with you?" Hayate asked, "With everything that has happened I imagine you are having some trouble."

Carim sighed, "Sadly yes, ever since TSAB's connection to the JS incident was exposed publicly, people have lost faith in them. Many are starting to turn to the Church hoping that we will step in and replace TSAB. To add to our troubles the bombings are being held up as proof that TSAB can no longer be trusted with the safety of Mid-Childa and our allies."

Hayate leaned back into her seat, "I thought as much. How's the Church handling all this?"

Carim rested her hands on her lap, "Not well," she replied clearly concerned, "Some within the Church are beginning to think we should withdraw our support from TSAB. Also," she paused, "No one has said it aloud yet but I'm certain more than a few of our number would like to see the Saints Church replace TSAB."

Hayate reached forward for her tea cup, "Do you think anything will be done officially?"

"I don't think so, at this point it all seems to be talk. That said if we face another major incident like the bombings that will likely change and quickly."


	19. Chapter 19

Hayate dropped her head into her palm and sighed deeply. The young officer was thankful she had decided to sit before hearing Garand's report. When she had returned to her office not an hour ago, she had no idea what had happened at the reserve base. Now Hayate faced the loss of her informant and the injury of two of her knights. To add to things she now had increasing suspicions about the church. This was not turning into one of her better days. The only good news was the watch that had been found seemed to contain encrypted data, hopefully it held some answers. Hayate raised her head and leaned back into her chair slumping slightly. Then, she gave out her new instructions to Garand.

"I want you to investigate the church, today," she told him firmly.

"You got it," Garand responded.

"One other thing, I want bring Vice in on this."

Garand narrowed his eyes slightly, "Roger, how much can I tell him?"

"We are about to officially start up the Anti-Magic unit we need him in on this, it can't be avoided," she took a brief pause, "For now, tell him only what you need to."

"Understood ma'am," he responded leaving his seat and exiting the room.

Left alone in her office Hayate spun around in her chair so she could gaze out the window. She let out a slow, worried sigh. Events were unfolding fast. To keep her plan on track and not lose ground, or expose herself, the young officer needed to tread carefully. More importantly, she needed to make sure her friends would be well clear of what was to come. To do that may mean hurting them but if she lacked the resolve to enact her intentions, they would be in far more danger.

* * *

Vice looked across to the SUV's driver seat at Garand, "This is pretty crazy," he told the PMC, "You sure the ones who stole the weapons are hiding at the church?"

"That's what we are going to find out," he answered.

"Think the Saints Church has a hand in this?" Vice continued.

"Hey I thought you worked need to know ops before what's with the questions?" Garand asked with a snicker.

"Yeah, I've worked ops like this before, doesn't mean I'm not curious though," Vice told him with a small shrug.

"Well stow it, unless of course you want to disappear?" He joked.

"Alright then, but what about a different subject, like you and Signum for example."

Garand squinted one eye and snickered, "What makes you think I'll answer that either."

"Come on, You two spend a lot of your off time together, there's got to be something going on between you two," Vice pressed.

"It's none of your business bub," he told the shooter sharply.

Vice clicked his tongue, "Alright fine, I'll drop it."

With the conversation now thoroughly dead, Vice deiced to examine a topographical map of the area surrounding the church, searching for the best vantage point to set up on for the duration of the mission. Relieved of Vices questions Garand started thinking about Signum as the highway rolled by, wondering why she had seemed to have a mental break inside the Jar. His best guess was she had remembered something frightening from her past that caused her to lash out, violently. He knew the knight had her issues but this was something new, or at least something she was able to hide until now. The possibility that this related to what he had observed in her thus far also appeared likely. He worried that her condition was steadily degrading.

By the time the two men arrived at the mission area it was after dark. Garand pulled the SUV off the road and into the tree line. Shutting off the engine, both men stepped out.

"Got your vantage point picked out?" Garand asked walking around to the back of the vehicle.

"There's a hill 400 yards to the south of the objective. It's a little obvious but we aren't here to start a fight so it should be fine," Vice explained.

Garand opened the back of his SUV and removed a black hooded sweat shirt that matched his pants, putting it on he then placed his pistol in a locked case leaving him only with his trench knife.

"That's all you're going to take?" Vice asked.

"Yeah, besides, like you said I'm not here to start a fight," he told the sniper pulling a black, one hole balaclava over his face, "Let's go."

Vice nodded as he reached for an ammo can resting next to the gun case. From it he took two magazines of Anti-Magic rounds, "Just in case," he said with a smirk holding up the two box magazines.

Vice quickly made his way to his observation point wrapped in his ghillie suit. Once on the hill he found an up rooted tree. An inexperienced shooter would have hidden among the gnarled roots using the tree for both cover and concealment. Vice though, was no amateur. Moving through the brush along the back of the hill he found a more appropriate location. It was somewhat more open than the spot with the fallen tree and had only tall dead grasses and a few shrubs to conceal himself with. The shooter laid prone among the underbrush and began his prep work.

"Storm Raider, set up," the young Master Sargent's device promptly deployed in its rifle form. He shouldered the weapon and peered through the scope towards the Church. The area around the target was well lit flooding the perimeter but keeping the area closest to the church dark. It was a lighting technique used to make it difficult to get a good look at the surrounding area. "Storm Raider, activate spotter mode."

"Yes sir," the device then materialized a small machine the size of a soda can that resembled a helicopter. The small machine took to the air and began to orbit the mission area at high altitude. The tinny aircraft sent Vice real time images of the area surrounding the target, projecting them into the far right corner of his line of sight.

"One, Two, Bravo," Vice called over the radio signaling his readiness to begin.

"Roger Two," The PMC answered.

Due to the lighting conditions around the Chapel Vice was having trouble seeing the area closest to the structure. The marksman turned a dial under his scope and his sight picture transformed into a thermal image, lighting up the men patrolling the area in a bright white silhouette. Reaching to the top of his scope he carefully adjusted it one click at a time using the information being relayed to him from Storm Raider's small UAV. With his weapon dialed in he was ready if the need arose. Watching the area intently he found a lone figure making his way to the south side of the building. Crawling through the brown grass and snow, slowly and carefully Garand approached the building. When the PMC reached the edge of the lit permitted he stopped.

"Two, am I clear?" Garand asked.

"One, hold position," Vice instructed. The marksmen watched as a two man foot patrol walked right past Garand's location. When they were out of sight Vice radioed the PMC, "Clear."

Garand stood up and dashed though the lit area around the church and into the unlit section closest to the building. Staying low and close to the wall, he crept towards a closed door. The tall man reached for the doorknob. Suddenly the door swung open nearly hitting him.

"Damn," a male voice complained from beyond the door, "Why did we have to get stuck doing this?"

"Because it's what we signed on for stop bitching," another man responded.

Vice's finger moved to his weapons trigger. Was Garand discovered already? He had to decide, shoot or don't. The marksmen watched with intense focus as the two men turned to the right and started walking towards a gazebo. As the door began to automatically swing closed Garand caught it with his hand and quickly ducked inside, letting it close behind him. Vice breathed a relieved sigh his heart still thumping in his ears.

Inside the church Garand treaded cautiously down a short corridor leading to the main hall of the church. The PMC took cover behind an ornate pillar and some pews. He cautiously observed the chaos in side. People in plain clothes scurried about carrying unmarked crates and card board boxes. There were also a few individuals dressed in the grab of The Saints Church assisting them. They seemed to be carrying everything to the rear of the building. Garand did not bother to check the back room the sign on the double doors saying 'Dimensional Transient Room' was explanation enough. It was clear they were abandoning the church and taking everything not nailed down.

The PMC continued along the wall making sure to move slowly and remain unnoticed. Near the opposite end of the church Garand found an open door way that led him into the administrative offices. Looking around the room he hoped to find a computer or two. However he was too late. The towers were gone; all that was left were a pair of monitors atop some desks and a collection of empty boxes. Garand was about to move on when he heard a group of people approaching. He rechecked the room for a place to conceal himself but all the desks faced the windows and the only other furniture present were book shelves and a sofa placed against the opposite wall. The footsteps and voices grew closer. The PMC had moments to determine a way to avoid detection.

The men clearing the church entered the office discussing various pointless topics. Some looked around the room but Garand was nowhere to be seen. They moved on towards the book case and the man at the head of the group grabbed its outside edge and pulled. The fixture swung open and revealed a metal door behind it. The lead man then opened the door and proceeded down a set of stairs along with the others, not bothering to close the door behind them. Several seconds passed and a large box in the corner stirred and lifted from the ground. A pair of legs beneath it carried the box to the door then came to a halt. Garand discarded the box and smirked, surprised his simple trick had worked.

The PMC entered the hidden stairwell and followed it down. At the bottom he caught the smell of bleach and disinfectant. Once again Garand found a door carelessly left open. In the basement of the church he had discovered a medical facility of some kind. Proceeding onward he found a maze of hallways, locked doors, observation rooms, and labs. Finding one of the labs open he ducked inside closing the door behind him. He examined the some of the medical equipment in an attempt to determine the manufacturer but it was all unmarked. Continuing his search he tried to find anything that might indicate where the equipment had come from, such as documents or user manuals, but still found nothing. The PMC scratched his scar briefly when a thought came to mind. Moving to what appeared to be a monitoring device of some kind, he used his knife to pry open the back of the machine. Using a small flash light taken from his belt Garand looked through the machines internal components. Spotting something that appeared relevant he reached inside and removed a large circuit board. In its center was a large CPU with three letters that right away caught his eye, SER. Following that was a unique eight digit alpha numeric ID number. Quickly he pried the chip free of the board and placed it in his pocket before replacing the machines rear cover.

Garand was about to continue on when he caught the sound of voices from an adjacent room. Curious, he moved to a set of double doors that linked the lab to the next room. Standing up just high enough to peek through the window in the door he observed two men on the other side. One appeared to be a scientist, the other man he easily recognized. It was the same person who had attacked the hanger he and Signum had raided, the same man they had encountered hours earlier in the Jar. In front of them was a cell but he could not see inside it.

"This is her sir," the man in the lab coat told the mage.

"And the test's?" The mage asked using the electronic voice of his device to hide the sound of his own.

"We confirmed it, the DNA is a match, but when coupled with our test materials, all the results turned up as rejections. Trying to duplicate the earlier results is proving more problematic than we expected. Even with the new specimens you acquired we still might not have any success. The criteria for a successful symbiosis seem to be all over the board. At the moment my personal belief is that these devices may have been a counter measure against the St. Kaisers not a weapon to be used by them."

The mage sighed, "So she's useless."

"No, oh no," the scientist assured his cohort, "She has many other uses beyond our primary research. One thing in particular I'd like to look into is her ability to alter her physical mass with the use of magic. She would also be useful in our research of various other Lost Logia in our possession. Of course there is also the matter of her potential as a candidate for UG."

"Well you sold me doctor," the mage admitted, "The last thing we should do is needlessly waste resources. We'll bring her with us, but secure the other subjects before we leave, we won't need them."

"About that sir, there are no others. That last round of attempts exhausted our supply of subjects."

The mage snickered lightly, "That's convenient. In that case I'll prepare Echo One for transfer."

"Sir you shouldn't it's not safe, it takes special precautions to prepare and move a Class 1."

The mage turned and waved his hand over his shoulder, "I know, my Barrier Jacket has all the necessary mods."

"Sir there's one other thing, a question I hoped you might be able to answer."

The mage stopped and turned around, "And that is?"

"The bombings, do we know who perpetrated them yet?" The scientist probed.

The mage folded his arms and his body language suggested concern, "No we don't. Whoever was behind it covered their tracks thoroughly," he took a brief pause and glanced up to the ceiling, "The event continuously gets stranger the longer we investigate it. The targets appear random but the organization and planning behind the attacks are far too complex to be simple random acts. To add to the situation no one has taken responsibility for the bombing and that's making many people nervous."

The scientist stroked his chin for a moment, "Perhaps the purpose was simply to 'stir the pot?'" the man speculated, "Since the attack, not only our group but other groups, both outside and within the TSAB command structure, have begun to alter their coarse. The event has thrown everything into chaos and uncertainty. Mistakes are clearly being made as a result. Something I'm sure you are aware of."

"And you think that was the whole point?" The mage concluded, "To throw us into a confused panic? That possibility has been considered. For the moment we have decided to act on that same assumption. We will likely take our operation and run it with more due caution. Unfortunately this may mean you won't receive any new test subject for some time."

The man in the lab coat breathed a disappointed sigh, "Well I suppose it can't be helped. We are too close to completion to risk losing the project to a minor slip up."

The Mage turned again to resume his departure, "Don't worry doctor this will only be a minor delay. Your new facility already has an ample supply of subjects acquired before this mess started."

The Mage approached the double doors where Garand was observing from. Lacking a box for concealment the PMC was forced to hide himself by more conventional means, ducking behind a collection of large medical equipment covered in a plastic sheet. As the mage walked to the exit he suddenly stopped as if noticing something. For a moment, he looked directly at Garand's hiding place. The mage stepped towards the PMC's location then stopped as if deciding it was only his imagination. Continuing on his way he left the lab and proceeded down the hall.

Emerging from his hide Garand progressed to the room the mage had just left. Slowly he opened the door. Standing on the other side in front of the cell was the scientist leering at his prisoner. Slowly, the PMC crept towards the unsuspecting man in the lab coat. Garand drew his knife and reached for the scientist. In an instant he had the man in a tight one armed choke hold. He held the blade of his knife up to the scientist's face.

Speaking in a low voice he issued a warning, "If you try to call for help I will gladly give you a tracheotomy, nod if you understand."

The PMC's prisoner nodded shakily.

"Where is your server room?"

"It's in the basement but it's been wiped clean," he replied honestly, his fear overriding any loyalty the man had.

"Are there backups?"

"Yes but I don't know where they are," the man answered, his voice shaky with fear.

Garand easily picked up on the man's fear. He knew it would be easy to cox information out of him with little effort, so he continued to question the man, "What are you studying here?"

"Lost Logia," the man in the lab coat replied hesitantly.

"What kind?" Garand pressed in a threatening tone.

"A new class with amazing properties but controlling it is proving problematic."

"What kind of properties?" Garand asked pressing the blade of his knife against the man's neck.

"I can't tell you that!" The man pleaded in a panic.

"Of course you can," the PMC told him, craving a small shallow cut into his neck.

The scientist hesitated for a few moments until his fear once again over road his loyalties, "If our theories and test hold true, they can nullify magic."

Garand was tempted to ask where he could get one of these Lost Logia but refrained when he recalled the earlier conversation he had heard, "Got a name for these Logia?"

"We don't work with names here, but the project does have a serial number, 2501," the scientist told him still unsteady.

Garand looked over the man's shoulder at a small huddled mass in the corner of the cell covered by a worn blanket. The only part of the small person that was visible was a slender arm clinging tightly to the warmth of the bedding, dotted with several track marks, "Who's your friend?"

"A test subject," he replied carefully.

"Open it." The PMC ordered slamming the frightened man into the metal bars.

"Alright, just don't kill me please," with an unsteady hand he unlocked the cell, "Please, now let me go," he pleaded.

The PMC quickly processed the situation and came to the most tactically sound conclusion regarding the scientist. To ensure the man could not divulge the nature of his questions there was only one choice. Garand plunged his knife through the side of the man's neck and pushed the blade forward, out through its front, effectively decapitating him. The PMC then discarded the body pushing it aside.

"Are you alright?" He asked the huddle mass.

There was no verbal response only a weak nod.

Slowly he approached the person and reached out to them. The small form withdrew further into the corner but not beyond his reach. Gently he moved part of the blanket aside revealing the face of a young girl. Her hair was silver with a slight tinge of green and her eyes exhibited perfect heterochromia. The look on her face was vacant, her eyes were blood shot and her pupils were dilated. The girl was clearly drugged but still seemed to have some of her senses still intact.

"Can you walk?"

"I think so," the little girl told him as she struggled to her feet. She appeared shaky and unsteady but insisted on walking under her own power despite an offer from Garand to carry her.

"Follow me," he instructed heading to the door leading back to the maze of corridors.

Sticking his head out into the hall Garand checked to see if the way was clear. Once he was satisfied it was safe to do so the two proceeded. Proceeding towards the exit proved slow, but Garand managed to lead the girl within sight of the stairs without incident. The only obstacle left was a side hall where he could hear a small group talking. Using a small dental mirror he checked around the corner to see how far down the corridor the group was. The PMC was in luck, the group was at the far end. Waiting for the men's attention to be well away from the hall he darted towards the stairs then stopped. The PMC gestured for the girl to follow. The young prisoner quickly scurried after him. Together they climbed the stairs up into the chapel office. After confirming the room was clear he stepped inside the girl in tow. Garand looked to the big windows on his right. They would be their best exit as he walked towards them a voice called out to him.

"I thought so," a familiar synthesized voice admitted.

Garand did not answer. He only straitened his posture putting himself between the mage and the girl.

"Who are you?" The mage demanded to know, "Did you come to rescue the girl? Perhaps or are you here for something else?"

Garand remained silent watching the mage intently with a vacant thousand yard stare. It was as if the PMC was looking through the mage rather than at him.

"What's your affiliation?"

Still the PMC said nothing.

"Not very talkative are you?" He sighed ignoring the stare, "Fine it's doesn't matter return the girl to me. She belongs to us."

Garand still said nothing. He was not interested in conversing with the mage. However he did take advantage of the time it bought him to back up towards the window.

"Didn't you hear me! Return the girl, now!" The mage demanded drawing his sword.

The PMC replied by presenting the man with his middle finger.

"I guess there is just no reasoning with some people."

The mage bolted forward intending to run the PMC through. Garand however, made no apparent offensive or defensive moves. It suddenly dawned on the mage that something was wrong but it was too late. He had already committed to his charge. In an instant Garand rushed forward swaying slightly to the right. By the time the mage realized what had happened the PMC had wrapped his left arm around the man's sword arm. Nose to nose with the PMC the mage felt a sharp deep pain just below his ribs. Ignoring it he tried to pull away from Garands grasp but the big man quickly followed up by slamming his forehead into the mages nose just before freeing him from his grip.

The mage staggered backwards. Glaring at the PMC from behind his scarf, he noticed the menacing trench knife in his right hand. The weapon almost explained the pain in his side but it did not explain why his barrier Jacket had not fully protected him. The mage could sense right away that Garand was no Mage. It was then he realized the PMC must have used sheer physical force to penetrate his armor and inflict damage. The mage touched the site of his injury. Right away he could feel a small tear and a trickle of blood. The wound was very shallow but the brute force of the strike was the real power behind the attack. It left his entire side throbbing in pain.

Garand switched his knife into his other hand. A group of close quarters mages would have the advantage against him in a knife fight, but one on one, he was not to be taken lightly. He smirked behind his balaclava. All those times he'd sparred with Signum had paid off over the past year. Through trial and error he had forged the skills to hold off an opponent of Signum's caliber and in some cases even win. Fighting a man like this mage would be a cake walk in comparison. Especially when coupled with the fact that, only hours earlier, he had filled this mage full of bullet holes. He had an advantage and he fully intended to press it.

Garand snapped his right leg up and swung it hard towards the spot on the mage where his knife had cut into him. The mage quickly moved his empty hand to block the attack stopping the PMC's kick from connecting. Immediately the mage swung his sword targeting Garand's left arm. The PMC withdrew his leg and lowered his stance. He caught the blade of the sword with his trench knife and swung his empty fist at the mages throat. The mage quickly kicked his large opponent in the stomach forcing him back and giving him the chance to regain his lost momentum.

The mage suddenly activated a second device spawning an additional sword into his empty hand. As Garand regained his footing the mage charged forward sweeping his arms across his chest he snapped them open again in a scissor like motion. His intent was to decapitate the PMC. Again Garand pushed forward towards the mage's attack this time he ducked as low as he could letting the swords cross above his head. As the momentum of the mage's attack forced his arms to spread open, the tall man dratted up and grabbed the mage's left wrist in a tight grip. At the same time the mage quickly retaliated with his right sword hand targeting Garand's left leg. The PMC countered by blocking the sword with his knife, catching it between the knuckle guard and the blade.

The two were locked in a power struggle each trying to overpower the other. Behind his mask, Garand's mouth had twisted into an elated grin. Adrenaline surged to every inch of his body. All his senses bombarded his brain with a drastic increase in information. The PMC was beginning to enjoy himself. He wanted to tear the mage limb from limb then go after everyone else in the church just for the sheer fun of it. Suddenly a voice calling him from his ear peace shook him from his combat high.

"One!" Vice shouted, "Damn it you ass, they know you're there!"

Crap, Garand thought. It had happened again his problem had once again gotten the best of him. He did not have time to fool around. He had a mission objective and that was all that mattered. As he struggled with the mage he kept repeating in his head, the mission is all that matters. His heart calmed and his adrenaline eased up. With his mind cleared again he had to figure out a way to neutralize the mage quickly and get out in a hurry. However, before he could determine a course of action there was a sudden flash of light from behind him. An instant later a clenched fist shot towards the side of the mage's face with enough force to throw him across the room.

The PMC quickly checked his right, barely standing on her own was a gorgeous woman with silvery hair and heterochromia dressed in a medical gown that was clearly too small for her. He paused, wait, I know this trick, the PMC thought. He grumbled to himself, this is just fucked. The woman suddenly lost all equilibrium and began to topple forward. Garand promptly reached out and caught her.

"Two, One, I need an exit," the tall man requested lifting the woman and draping her over one shoulder.

"Stand by," Vice answered. The marksmen targeted the window nearest Garand and fired a single concussive round. The shot shattered the window completely leaving the PMC with a cleared exit from the building.

As he ran for the window, those in the churches main hall began to rush into the room in order to investigate the commotion. As soon as they saw the tall man making a dash for his exit the mage's among them activated their devices. As Garand jumped through the window the group fired on him. Pistol rounds and blasts of magic shot past him from the window as the tall man made a made sprint for the tree line. Suddenly one by one those attacking the PMC began to fall to the ground unconscious, struck by the magical sniper rounds of Vice's weapon. As Garand hit the tree line, the Marksmen watched through his scope as armed men poured out of the church hot on the PMC heels. Vice quickly started firing on the pursuers doing his best to pin them down. Each round he fired forced more of the armed men to seek cover and delay pursuit. However instead of trying to continue the chase, Garand's pursuers opened fire on the tree line saturating the forest in an attempt to hit Vice.

Once the pursuers had more or less come to a halt Vice quickly pulled up stakes and sprinted down the back side of the hill. It was not long before he rejoined Garand and they rushed towards the SUV.

"Damn it Garand!" Vice complained, "Didn't you say you've done convert ops before?"

"Yeah, but I never said I was any good at them!" He answered with a smirk, "Besides shit happens, adapt!"

"Well pardon me if the only place I want shit to happen is in the can!"

It was not long before the two men arrived at the SUV. Garand placed the unconscious girl in the back seat. Then the two men quickly jumped into the vehicle and sped away into the night.

((Authors notes:))

Sorry for the long wait. I've had other priorities. I struggled a bit with this chapter and ended up removing a lot of what I thought may have been 'over the top'. I even went as far as starting it over again from scratch. My big concern was that this chapter might seem to 'forced', like I was prying a bunch of stuff in just for the hell of it. There was also the fact I could not decide how much new information to reveal, to much and it spoils the story, to little and the whole chapter would seem pointless. However I think I found a happy medium, tell me what you think.


	20. Chapter 20

Garand and Vice drove long into the night taking turns at the wheel until they reached a truck stop two hours away from the city. There, they pulled over for a rest and a meal. There was one additional reason for the stop, during the drive the PMC had contacted an associate, instructing them to meet at this location. The two men stepped out of the vehicle looking somewhat worse for wear but still awake. They paused, waiting for their small passenger to exit the SUV. The young girl slowly exited the back seat wearing an old gray t-shirt far too large for her and what appeared to be a pair of shorts meant for an adult but on her they made for an adequate pair of trousers. Somewhat more energetic than before but still suffering from the after effects of whatever drugs were in her system, the young girl teetered off after her rescuers, sensing a hot meal in her foreseeable future.

"What exactly are we going to do about this kid?" Vice asked with a tired yawn.

"I've a contact that will look after her for us," Garand answered giving his head a good shake and his eyes a few hard blinks trying to increase the flow of blood to his head.

Vice glanced down at the young girl trailing close behind the two of them, "You know I don't really mind playing hero but isn't this going to paint a bull's eye on our asses?"

Garand shook his head as he opened the door to the diner, "From what I overheard, they have bigger problems to concern themselves with. One lost test subject isn't worth the risk to retrieve."

Inside the eatery it was empty, aside from a single waitress, a cook and a man in all ball cap and winter coat hunched over a cup of coffee. Garand led the way over to the man in the ball cap joining him in his booth. The PMC and the young girl sat across from the man and Vice took a seat next to him.

"Do you know what time it is, you damn badger?" The capped figure asked displeased, "I should be in bed with a woman right now, not catering to your requests."

"Suck it up," Garand told him with a leer, "There are a few things I need you to do for me."

The man in the cap took a brief look at the girl, "So I gathered."

"Wait a second," Vice interrupted as he connected the sound of the man's voice to the distinctive green hair beneath his hat, "Aren't you. . ."

The man in the cap quickly cut the shooter off, "It's just your imagination," Inspector Acous told the shooter.

Vice clamped his mouth shut.

"Miss!" Garand called waving the waitress over, "Waffles, Bacon and Sausage. Oh and blue berry pancakes with whip cream from my niece."

Vice sighed he wanted to just leave the girl and go, not eat. Surrendering to the PMC's superior will, he added his own request, "Spicy vegetable omelet."

"So what do you have for me?" The man in the cap asked.

Garand placed the computer chip he had acquired on the table, "I pulled this out of some un-serialized medical equipment in the basement of a Saints Church."

"Really," Acous took the chip and placed it in his pocket just as the waitress returned with the orders. With food now on the table the group began to eat while carrying on their conversation.

"I also found out our friends from the airfield may not be responsible for the down town bombings," Garand told his Acous between fork full's of waffle.

"Any evidence to support it?" Acous inquired.

"Nothing, all I have is a conversation I overheard. Also they mentioned something called UD and a project 2501" the PMC replied, "I got the impression from what they said that there is more than one group running around in the shadows, just like we figured, any ideas?"

"Not yet," the inspector admitted sipping his coffee, "The previous TSAB administration left a lot of self-sustaining black projects floating around and we're still trying to track all of them down. It's going to take a lot of time."

"What about UD and 2501?" Garand asked.

"2501 I have no info on, but UD," The inspector grumbled recalling all the trouble it had caused, "Of all the things to crawl out of a hole it had to be UD. It was worst idea of the lot."

"How about an explanation for the new guy?" The PMC requested.

"Unlimited Desire, it was the root Cause of the JS incident," Acous promptly replied, "When the three individuals controlling TSAB were eliminated and JS tossed in a cell, an unknown number of black projects that supported UD went rouge. Not to mention the additional projects affiliated with it. The entire thing is a huge mess and we are barely starting to scratch the surface."

"And our problem is connected to that," Garand added.

"It's certainly looking more and more that way," Acous agreed.

"Crap," Vice added.

Garand looked to his left to check on the girl. The small figure had devoured the entirety of her meal leaving no trace of it and was now sleeping soundly, "Well I guess we're done here. I'll leave the kid to you," he told the inspector as he got up from his seat.

"So," Vice began before standing from his seat, "What will happen to her?"

"Don't worry about it. The next time she opens her eye's she'll be in her own bed and all this will seem like a fading dream," Acous assured the shooter with a confident grin.

"You're going to drug her aren't you," Garand commented with a snide grin and a head shake.

"It's better than waking up screaming for the rest of her life," Acous told him in a cold emotionless tone.

The brief exchange sent a chill up Vices spine, but he said nothing. He had only met Acous a few times but that was enough. As a sniper he was trained to read and predict people's movements and body language. He was always watching for the inevitable moment of predictability, a single fraction of a second when his target was committed to a single predictable action or inaction. The inspector however, was different than a normal person. It was as if his every gesture was a carefully chosen lie, rendering him unreadable. To add to things, the majority of the time he appeared to play the aloof and friendly fool. However, there was something in Acous's eye's he could catch on occasion. It was not until Vice met Garand, that he would realize what it was that was hidden behind them. Both men shared a willingness to do horrible things for a 'good cause'. The thought made him question if either man was really one of the 'good guys'.

Garand suddenly paused remembering a final detail about the evening events. The fight with the mage was standing out in his mind. He had shot the man repeatedly earlier that day, yet the mage did not fight as if injured, "Can magic heal major wounds within a few hours?"

Acous thought for a moment on the question, "No, it can heal you to a small extent and maintain you vitals in emergency situations, but for major injures you'll need medical help. What kind of injuries are we talking?"

"Multiple gunshot wounds from a 7.62."

"If they were good hits and assuming the person did not die on the spot they would need to seek medical attention to recover. The only exception is high end magical constructs."

"Good to know," Garand commented absently as he walked away thinking on his fight with the mage again.

Vice and Garand stepped out of the diner and the young shooter stretched his arms and neck, "I can't wait to get home and into bed."

"What are you talking about?" Garand asked narrowing one eye at his cohort, "We have work to do; we're going straight to the hanger."

"What the hell?" Vice snapped, "Are you nuts? We're dead on our feet we need some sleep!"

"Stop your bitching princess," the PMC advised with a grin, "If we don't show up for work as if nothing happened, it would be suspicious."

Vice took a long sigh, "Damn it, I am going to need lots of coffee."

"I'll take mine as black as my heart!" Garand joked.

* * *

It was early morning in the rear office of hanger six, where Garand and Vice were hard at work. Both men were kept company by very large cups of coffee, potent enough to strip paint from pavement. The two men had spent the early hours of the day preparing and filing reports. At the moment, Vice was putting the final touches on the course out line for the new Anti-Magic Combat Section. Their recruits for the unit would be reporting for duty in two days and start their training immediately. Therefore everything needed to be squared away ASAP.

Vice leaned back into his chair and rubbed his reddening eyes, "That's it for the coarse out line," he told Garand as he reached for his coffee and took a long drink from the mug.

"Good work, I'm just about finished my reports," Garand informed Vice before taking a swig from his own supply of coffee, "I need you to make sure things are in order for the TIS inquiry later this morning."

"What is the TSAB Intelligence Service coming to bother us for?" Vice grimaced despite already having a good idea of the reasons why.

"Our stolen guns, what else."

The door leading to the hanger floor abruptly swung open and Teana stepped into the room carrying two empty cardboard boxes. Once she saw Vice sitting at his desk she happily greeted him with a smile, "Vice, good morning."

"Morning sunshine," the shooter responded unable to entirely conceal his fatigue behind his own smile. Although it appeared the young woman's arrival reenergized the man.

"You look awful didn't you sleep last night?" She asked with affectionate concern.

Vice took another long sip of his coffee before producing an answer, "Because of the attack on the reserve base yesterday, we had to spend the night trying to figure out how the old Sierra weapons ended up in the hands of terrorists."

"I could have helped out," she advised.

"It's fine, besides, yesterday was your last day as a member of the unit any way," Vice replied.

Garand peered around his computer monitor, "I told you if you came to work for me I'd set you on the fast track to becoming an enforcer," he told her with clear and present pride, "And a keep my word. I added all the appropriate doc's to your Per File. As promised I've shaved some time off your enforcer training. You should be able to get your full quals within 10 months or so."

"Thank you Mr. Garand," Teana said as she went about clearing off her desk, "I appreciate it."

Garand waved his hand absently looking back to his monitor, "It's not a problem. I don't suppose I could convince you to stay a while longer, until we train up the new unit? We could always use another shooter."

Teana looked across the room at the PMC and smiled, "No way in hell, Badger."

Vice let out a loud chuckle and Garand growled slumping back into his seat. It seemed Vita's nick name for the PMC was really starting to get around.

* * *

Some hours later Garand was waiting outside the hanger's security door. He had received a call a few minutes prior that the pair of TIS officers he was expecting were on their way. The tall man patiently waited for the TIS members to arrive. Sipping his seventh cup of coffee the PMC wondered how Signum was doing. He had gotten an email from Yagami telling him she had stayed overnight at the hospital along with Vita and were both fine, but he wanted to see for himself that they were alright. A cold winter breeze scrapped against his face jarring him from his thoughts just in time to see his guests arrive. A simple black sedan with TSAB plates pulled into the parking lot and from it, two people stepped out.

The driver was a plane looking man with dark hair and un-extraordinary features. He had the type of face that was easily forgotten and drew no attention. His uniform was that of a TSAB Army officer, but the unit badge on his shoulder and a pair of small pins on his lapels indicated his position as a member of the TSAB Intelligence Service. Unlike the other 4 branches of TSAB, Army, Air, Navy and Enforcers, TIS had no actually uniform. In the majority of their duties a uniform was detrimental, but on occasion they chose to wear one as proof they were indeed members of TSAB.

The man's passenger turned out to be an attractive young blonde woman, probably the same age as Teana. She had a cold, serious and focused expression, giving off the impression she was only interested in her work. She wore an enforcer uniform, but had no unit patch or rank. This indicated to Garand she was probably an enforcer recruit receiving On the Job Training.

The male TIS officer approached Garand and held out a hand, "Mr. Garand? I'm Major Luger."

"Major," the PMC greeted sharply before firmly shaking his hand.

"This is my shadow, Recruit Magnus," the Major added with a small smile as if trying to inject some humor into the word shadow.

Garand once again reached out his non-coffee occupied hand. Magnus took his hand and gave it a firm shake. The PMC was quickly impressed by the firm grip she demonstrated that easily out classed her supervisor.

"I'll need to see you orders, ID's, and supporting instructions before I can let you any farther," Garand instructed the Major.

The TIS officer and his shadow promptly complied. Luger handed Garand a file folder filled with the necessary paper work as well as his ID. Page by page the PMC reviewed the Major's orders and instructions. According to them, Garand had to give Luger nearly free reign of the hanger and its records. Once he had finished, the tall man handed back the folder and ID's. Then, from his pant pocket he gave each of them a visitor pass for the hanger.

"Keep these on display at all times," Garand instructed. The PMC lead the two officers through the first security door into a cramped room with a set of small lockers, each with a key hanging from their tiny doors, "Place your Devices, Cell Phones, PDA's, and cameras in the lock boxes. They are not allowed beyond this point," Garand instructed as he placed his own PDA into one of the small lockers, and then locked it, taking the key and placing it in his pocket. Once Luger and Magnus complied, security buzzed them in allowing them to enter the hanger, "Where do you want to start?"

"A simple tour of the facility will do for now," Luger answered, "I'd also like to ask you a few initial questions."

Garand started walking at a relaxed pace, "Alright, ask."

"I understand you are from a non-administration world correct? Have you had any contact with any one from your home world or left to visit since coming to Mid-Childa?"

"Negative," the PMC answered flatly.

"Your current position at the New Equipment Development Section is Chief Test Engineer, correct? Could you please out line your responsibilities?" The Major inquired.

"I manage the day to day operations of the project as well as submitting any technical changes to the design engineers. I also do the majority of the testing and scheduling for the small arms," Garand replied summing up the majority of his responsibilities.

"Have there been any recent security infractions?" Luger inquired.

"The last infarction was three months ago. Someone brought a cell phone into the hanger."

"According to access records, you and Signum Yagami recently accessed the warehouse storing the defunct prototype Anti-Magic System equipment. What was the purpose of this?"

"Inventory check," Garand answered, "We still have a some of the old equipment hear in the hanger and it's starting to take up useful space. We needed to determine if there was sufficient space in the warehouse to store the last of it," he lied.

"Did you notice anything out of the ordinary while you were there?"

"Negative, then again we didn't open any of the crates."

"But you believe the weapons and equipment used during the attack on the reserve base were the ones from project Sierra?"

"Yeah, unless someone else has started making AMF weapons."

Luger nodded as if coming to the same conclusion as Garand. The Major continued to question the PMC as he was shown around the hanger taking notes and change subjects quickly looking for any discrepancies in the information he was being given. In the end, Luger could not find anything amiss with the hanger's security or with the statements given by Garand, yet. The tour ended at the machine shop where the PMC kept his pet project.

"Are there any other questions?" Garand asked folding his arms across his chest.

"I have a few," Magnus said sternly. The young woman had stayed completely silent through the course of Luger's questioning, simply adding notes to a clip board as the two men talked, "According to witness reports after yesterday's incident, you were seen rummaging through a dead man's pockets, care to explain?"

"Sure, he was in the car with Signum and Vita when it was blow up at the start of the attack. I checked him for ID but didn't find anything," the PMC explained.

"So you do not know who the man was?" The young woman pressed.

"Negative."

"Do you know why he was traveling with the two knights?" She continued, carefully observing Garands reactions.

"Frade not," he told her casually.

Magnus stared expressionless into Garand's eyes for a few moments, "I see, then we will ask them for further information."

Luger then took over the conversation, "That should cover all our questions for now. We also need to question the other members of NEDS to build a full picture of this matter. Is there an empty office we can use?"

"Yeah," the PMC answered, "At the back corner of the hanger there is a small, unlocked office. There's a phone in there along with the list of contact info for every one on you interview list."

"Thank you for you cooperation Mr. Garand. If all goes well we should be able to wrap up the initial by the end of the day," Luger told the tall PMC before walking towards his provided work space.

[Sir,] Magnus signaled her supervisor telepathically, [Do you think he was lying?]

[I 'think' he is leaving out details. Finding those details though, is simply another part of our job,] Luger raised the index finger of his right hand to emphasize his next point, [There is something important I want you to remember Magnus. When conducting an investigation you need to under stand that lies are mere words with nothing substantiate them. However, deceit is the melding of truth, fiction, action, and solid evidence to create a set of facts indistinguishable from truth. In order for us to be effective, deceit is essential. It is an important skill you will need to acquire, practice and master if you wish to meet your mission intent.]

[Yes sir,] she replied.

Garand turned towards the machine shop and glanced over his shoulder at the pair, odd, he thought, they didn't ask about the watch.

* * *

After spending some time tinkering with his private project and once his guests from TIS had left, Garand departed the hanger, bound for the hospital. Along the way he opted for a detour, taking him to a flower shop where an annoyingly bubbly teenage girl put together a get well bouquet with far more giggling than was necessary. A few additional kilometers latter he arrived at the military hospital where Signum and Vita were staying. In no time at all the PMC located his friend's room and was knocking on the door.

"Sig?" He called, "I come bearing gifts, don't worry though it's something tasteful," he added as he opened the door. However on the other side all he found was a perturbed looking Hammer Knight lying in her hospital bed.

"She's not here," Vita told him in a displeased tone.

"Hey Wood Pecker, your alive! I was worried there for a bit," he told her with snide grin as he walked into the room.

"I told you not to call me that you damn Badger!" she barked clearly agitated by the nick name.

"Oh I'm sorry, here have some flowers as an apology," he told her with a snicker laying the flowers into the girls lap.

Vita clicked her tongue at the peace offering, "Aren't those for Signum?"

"Yeah but she's not here now is she," he noted pulling up a chair next to the small knights bed, "So how long till you can get out of here?"

"Tomorrow," Vita grumbled, "The doctors are treating me with kid gloves. Honestly I've been hurt worse," she told the PMC with a snort.

"Worse than being blown up and having all your organs pulverized?" Garand asked skeptically with a raised eyebrow.

Vita jabbed her thumb into the center of her chest, "I've had my heart cut clean in two and come out alive," she told him with a self-satisfied grin.

"Impressive," he answered with a sarcastic round of applause. If anyone else had told him that, he would never have believed them, but Vita was a Wolkenritter and the normal rules of nature did not necessarily apply, "Worst pounding I ever took was from being blown up by a 500lb IED, broke nearly every bone in my body and left me in a coma for a week. Doctor said if I hadn't been so fit I would have died at the scene," he told the small knight proudly puffing out his chest.

"That's nothing, I've taken a direct hit from a Belkan battle ship," she bragged.

"Damn it, can't think a way to one up that," he grimaced. The PMC waited for a victory remark from Vita but for some reason she stayed silent, "Something bugging you?"

"Did something happen inside the Jar?" Vita asked watching Garand's face for any hint of deception.

"We let the leader of the attack slip past us," he sighed clearly displeased with himself, "Why do you ask?"

"Signum seemed upset about something but wouldn't tell me about it," the Hammer Knight explained.

"Well, she tends to hold herself expectations pretty high. So, botching the leaders capture has probably got her feeling a bit down," Garand waved his right hand back and forth brushing aside Vita's concerns, "She'll bounce back easily."

The two were suddenly interrupted by a soft female voice calling out from the doorway, "How are you feeling Vita?" Shamal asked as she joined them. The blonde doctor noticed Garand right away, "Mr. Garand, here to visit Signum?"

"Vita too actually, poor kid was lying here crying in pain. Thought she might be happy to get a little company," he replied with a wide smirk.

"Who the hell would want a Badger as company?" Vita barked, "And when exactly was I crying in pain you delusional twit? As soon as I get out of this bed you'll be the one crying!"

"Come on you two," Shamal began holding her palms in front of herself, "Stop bickering. Besides we all know it's just an act anyway," she continued with a suspiciously cheery smile, "They says best friends fight the most," Shamal concluded still smiling.

"Bugger," Garand barked as she stated the obvious. The blonde knight was correct, the PMC did consider Vita a friend despite their frequent bickering, which he thoroughly enjoyed. Although, something about the way Shamal aired this truth crawled under his skin.

Vita clicked her tongue and looked away from Shamal and Garand to hide whatever expression she might be showing on her face, "Whatever, so why are you here Shamal?"

The blonde doctor giggled a little, and then dropped the subject, "Garand I need you to come with me for a few minutes."

"What's up?" He asked rising from his chair.

"I need to discuss the medical needs for the new unit you're putting together," Shamal told him walking towards the door, "Vita I'll be back soon."

Garand followed the blonde knight out into the hall. Immediately, he had the feeling this had nothing to do with the unit. She led him out onto a balcony on the same floor. The location was devoid of any people and a cold breeze loomed in the air. Shamal walked up to the guard rail, stopped, then turned to face Garand. Her expression was stern and resolved. The PMC had the feeling whatever she wanted to ask, he would be forced into giving an answer regardless of his own wishes.

"I want you to tell me what happened inside the Jar," she demanded, "Especially the parts not included in your report."

Shit, he growled internally, "What do you mean exactly?" The PMC asked with the most believable look of confusion he could muster.

Shamal glared at the tall man, "I'm talking about Signum, now tell me what happened!"

Garand realized he could not lie to her; she would pick up on it in a heartbeat so he would have to be direct, "No."

"Pardon me?" She asked displeased.

"You heard me."

"Garand I'm asking you politely, tell me what happened to her," she requested through clenched teeth.

"And I'm saying no. It's not my place to share that information. If you want an answer, talk to the horse's mouth."

"Do you honestly think she would tell me?" She said raising her voice, "Every time I ask, Signum stubbornly insist she's fine!"

"Sorry," Garand apologized folding his arms across his chest, "but I respect her decision, if she won't discuss it, then neither will I," in truth Garand did want to discuss the matter with Shamal but he had to remain tight lipped.

Shamal clenched her fists, "You, neither of you have any idea how bad this could be," she stomped over to Garand and grabbed his shirt collar in an uncharacteristic act of aggression, "I am sick of your stubborn attitude and Signum's! This is not something that can be easily fixed! That place, those experiments that damn man!" She was practically shouting at this point and her eyes were starting to fill with tears.

It was enough to draw concern out of the PMC. Garand gently took hold of Shamal's wrists, "What's going on?" he ask in monotone.

Shamal saw the opportunity she had to persuade information out of him and seized it, even though it meant revealing things from her past she wished could be erased. The blonde woman let go of the tall man and took in a deep breath gathering her thoughts and calming herself. When Garand released her hands she began.

"That Jar was once a lab operated by one of our final masters during the Belkan Conflict," she began, "That man, he," Shamal took in a deep breath, "The man's name was Simon Armalite and he was a sadist of the worst kind."

Garand's skin instantly started to crawl as it dawned on him just where this was going, but he remained silent and listened intently.

"Armalite was unlike any of our other masters. He did things that would have sickened the devil himself. That man did not just abuse us, he used us to abuse others as well. Torture and experimentation were his favorite activities. To him lives were nothing more than toys for him to play with," she took in another deep breath, "Signum, received the worst treatment since she was his favorite. The things he did to her," by this point Shamal was shaking. She had wanted to elaborate more to try and force Garand to empathize with her situation but she could not bring herself to look any farther into those hellish memories.

"I thought none of you remember what happened before you met Yagami?" the PMC asked.

"We can't, not really," Shamal explained, "After Reinforce passed away, many of our lost memories began to resurface. As a result We 'know' what happened to us in the past, but we don't 'remember'."

"What's the difference?"

"If you read a book about the World War II holocaust you learn all the information about what happened, the death toll, the people responsible, how it was committed. However, you yourself were never present, you may become angry or disgusted but you're not traumatized by it. All of it is second hand information. That's what our pasts are like to us, second hand information," she explained relieved she did not have to elaborate on Armalite, "It's related to how we retained combat experience each time the book chose a new master even after it reset itself. However, in Armalite's case, Reinforce wanted to try and wipe away all memory of him. She did not want a single trace left of him in our minds, but he had tampered with the book so extensively she had no idea what would happen once it reset itself. So she made sure I could recall the important parts of what happened, if need be, just in case something went wrong."

"And now something has gone wrong," Garand mumbled to himself. Fuck, he thought, I should have figured things would be worse than they appeared.

"Has gone wrong?" Shamal repeated wide eyed.

"Fuck," The PMC said as he mentally kicked himself.

"So something did happen."

"I still can't talk about it," Garand told her firmly, "but did you bother to tell Signum any of this? She might actually tell you what's wrong if you explained what you know to her."

Shamal opened her mouth to speak but then found herself at an utter loss for words, until she realized he was right, "I, I didn't think to explain things to her," now Shamal was mentally kicking herself.

The PMC reached out and patted her shoulder, "No worries, just talk to her again the next chance you get."

"I'll talk to her once she gets home from her appointment," she resolved.

* * *

Signum fidgeted in the leather chair she was sitting in. The woman was feeling distinctly nervous, well as nervous as a veteran warrior could get. She had never been to see a psychiatrist before. The knight had never been terribly fond of doctors. The thought of someone knowing more about your body than you did somehow made her uncomfortable. In this case the feeling was even more prevalent. The concept of a person probing her mind and her inner thoughts left her wanting to leave. However, she had to stay or Garand would not stop hounding her about her problems. To occupy her mind Signum began examining her surroundings. The office was part of an older building and was filled with an abundance of dark hard wood and 'soothing colors'. There was no desk in the room only a pair of large leather recliners and a sofa with a coffee table set in the center. The sides of the room were laden with display cabinets filled with nick-knacks and books. On the walls were the normal trappings you would expect to see in the office of any carrier doctor's office, medical degree's, coarse certificates, and qualifications. One item though, stood out from the rest, a single small frame, a little worn and aged compared to the others. It had perhaps seen several rooms prior to this one. Behind the slightly scratched glass was a medal, a TSAB medal. Specifically it was the medal known as the Valor Heart. Less than a handful of these had been presented in TSAB's history and they were usually given posthumously.

"I suppose you're wondering if that is mine," a gentle female voice called from the door way.

Signum suddenly realize she had be so absorbed in the medal she had not noticed the woman enter until she called out, "Oh, doctor," she said turning in her seat to face the source of the voice.

The woman entering the room hobbled in using a hand crafted wood cane for support, a severe limp easily apparent as she moved towards the chair opposite Signum. The doctor was of average stature and appeared to be in her fifties. She had a large scar on her neck that disappeared beneath her navy blue sports coat and white shirt. Once she was seated she tugged on her navy blue pant legs make sure they had not bunched up on the tops of her boots.

Boots, Signum thought, Doctors don't normally wear boots. Taking a second glance she noticed they were military dress boots, well-polished and maintained. Putting two and two together, Signum surmised from her baring and sharpness of dress, that the medal was likely the doctors, earned for some merits deed preformed in the line of duty. The knight was a little curious as to how the doctor earned the honor but refrained from asking. It was considered rude to pry into the past of any soldier uninvited, "No, I have just never seen one before," the knight admitted.

A small smile crept across the doctor's face, "I'm not surprised," she answered glancing to the small frame, "I keep it in my office because I find it helps break the tension when my patients realize they are being treated by a fellow soldier."

"I see," Signum answered finding herself indeed able to relax a little.

She smiled again, "My name is Serra Winchester," she told the knight holding out a hand.

"Signum Yagami," she answered taking her hand and shaking it firmly.

"I'll start with a few basic questions," Winchester began, "According to what I was told you have been 'troubled' about something, can you tell me about it?"

Signum found herself shifting in her seat again as the question sank in. She was not fond of the thought of sharing, but if she was to get better she had no choice, "I have been getting these feelings of unease, anxiety, and isolation. I don't know what triggers them but it feels like it's getting worse."

"How long has this been going on?"

For a moment Signum considered saying months even though it was a lie, but concluded it would not be the best idea, "Years, it used to be something that would happen only rarely but these feelings have been steadily become more frequent."

"What are you usually doing when you start to feel this way?"

Signum thought hard on the question before replying, "It usually happens in the evenings and," the knight found herself drawing a blank, for some reason she could not recall the other occasions it had happened, "I, can't remember the other times," she continued sounding disappointed.

"It's fine," Winchester assured her, "Lets move on."

Winchester continued to probe Signum's mind for answers. She inquired about her relationship with her family and friends, work history, deployments, medical history, personal preferences, values. The questioning went on for over an hour as the doctor created a working understanding of how the knight's mind functioned. It was a significant amount of information to work with and it made Signum wonder if all of it was really necessary. When the questions finally ended the knight could not help but feel more than a little exposed.

The doctor pondered the information she had been given for some time before speaking up once again, "There are holes in your memories correct, gaps that were placed intentionally?"

Signum nodded in response, "It's a little more complicated than that but there are periods of time where I have no memory."

"I cannot be certain, but I have a few ideas about what might be the source of your trouble. However, I don't want to jump to any conclusions. I'll need to check into a few details before I can make an accurate diagnosis."

Signum opened her mouth to ask another question but suddenly chose to hold back. The knight wanted to bring forward what had happened in the Jar but was unsure if she wanted to.

"Is there something else you wanted to add?" Winchester asked gently.

The knight took in a small breath, at this point she had already told the doctor everything so adding what happened in the Jar seemed to be the right choice, "Yesterday I," she paused thinking on how to word her statement, "Lost control of myself."

"How so?" The doctor asked with interest.

"It started with that feeling of uneasy I described from before but it steadily became worse. To be honest I even felt afraid," she admitted clasping her hands in her lap, "Three times that day I slipped into flash backs but now I can't recall what the memories were of," Signum made a self-disappointed sigh, "During the last instance was when I lost control and attacked a friend, although I can barely recall it happening at all."

Winchester placed her left hand on her chin and added this new information to what she had gathered thus far, "Thank you for sharing that Ms. Yagami, that will help me narrow down your root cause."

Signum nodded.

"I'll set up your next appointment for some time in the next week if that is alright?"

"That's fine," she told the doctor as she stood up. Signum unexpectedly found herself glancing back to the medal on the wall.

"I received it a little over thirty years ago," Winchester explained, "For ordering my entire unit to die."

The frank and simplistic explanation took the knight a bit by surprise. From the way she said it Signum gathered that she had long ago come to terms with her decision.

"We all have burdens to bare Ms. Yagami," Winchester added, "However; a person can only carry so much before their legs break. For now the best advice I can give you is to share your troubles, talk with someone who can understand how you feel," she urged.

Signum nodded, "I will and thank you doctor."

Winchester smiled just a little, "Don't thank me yet, wait until I help you overcome this."

The pink haired sword knight walked out to the curb and stopped. The day light was quickly fading and the sky was burning a bright orange as the last traces of the day slipped away. The air chilled quickly, coinciding with the sun slipping out of sight. Signum looked around for any sign of a cab; you usually saw one or two waiting outside hospitals or medical office buildings like the one she now stood outside of. To her dismay though, it appeared none were awaiting potential fares. She was about to call for a one when someone decided to call out to her.

"Sig!"

The sound of her abbreviated name immediately told her it was Garand calling for her. "Garand?" She answered slightly surprised as she looked around for the tall man.

"Over here!" He called again.

The second call let the knight quickly zero in on the PMC standing next to his truck across the street. Signum jogged across the road and joined him next to his pick up, "What are you doing here?"

"Thought you might need a ride, hope in."

"Thank you," she said getting into the vehicles passenger seat.

Garand climbed in and started the truck, "So how's your head?"

Signum almost reminded Garand of his promise but she stopped herself when it occurred to her he was referring to her concussion, "I was told it was minor, I'll be fit for duty by tomorrow."

"That's good, Hayate emailed me. It looks like we'll be getting our cyborg instructors tomorrow. I'm looking forward to it."

"So she managed to convince them then? That's good," Signum comment reclining into her seat.

"So where too?" Garand asked, "The bar perhaps?"

"No thank you, I just want to go home," she told him rubbing her eyes.

"Roger," he replied pulling away from the curb.

As they got onto the high way Signum noticed Garand was looking a little worse for ware, "You don't look good."

"Really?" He commented, "Well I guess it's no surprise, I've been active for over 24 hours," he smirked, "Hayate's a real hard ass."

A brief chuckle passed through Signum, "I don't think I've ever heard anyone call Hayate a, hard ass."

"Something tells me I won't be the last," he concluded with a smirk.

"No," the knight agreed, "Probably not."

By the time they reached the Yagami household the sun had vanished beyond the horizon and the first stars began to glow in the clear sky above. Garand had intended to simply drop his friend off but to his delight Signum asked if he would like to stay for dinner. The knight did have an ulterior motive for this though. She believed the PMC's exhaustion was more significant than he let on. She decided the man needed some food and a bit of rest before he tried driving any farther.

Signum lead the way into the large family home. She opened the door and called out, "I'm home."

"Honey I'm home!" Garand added with a grin, Signum quickly swatted the back of the man's head.

"Hello dear how was your day?" Hayate answered playing along with the joke, "Are you joining us for dinner?"

"That's the plan," Garand answered walking into the living room , then dropping himself onto the couch he looked around. The ground floor of the home was very open, the dining room, living room and kitchen were all interconnected into one signal large space.

"Sorry for bringing a stray animal home," Signum said with a smirk as she joined Garand in the living room.

"It's fine, I'm making a lot of curry tonight so there will be more than enough," Hayate informed her knight.

"I am not a stray!" Garand haphazardly objected.

"I suppose that is true," Signum admitted, "All the same you're still an animal though."

"Agreed!" He barked briefly shooting his left hand into the air. The PMC glanced around the room again and noted an Acoustic guitar tucked into a corner, "Whose guitar is that?"

"It's mine," Signum responded.

"Really? I always had you pegged as the type to play piano or violin," Garand admitted with surprise.

"Hayate said the same thing," the knight answered glancing towards the kitchen.

"What kind of music do you play?" the PMC added.

"A little of everything," she told him walking over to the instrument, "Hayate bought it for me second hand as a birthday gift of sorts."

"I remember that day," Hayate called from the kitchen, "You were actually pretty excited when you saw what I had gotten for you."

"Mind strumming up a tune?" Garand asked clearly interested in the knight's potential musical talent.

"Only if you ask politely," she teased.

"Well, young miss I would be infinitely grateful if you would please be willing to honor us with a demonstration of your musical skill," Garand requested in the most polite tone he could come up with.

The request garnished a smile and a small head shake, "Alright, any requests?"

"I'll let you decide."

Signum pulled over one of the chairs from the kitchen table and sat down. The knight plucked a few notes ensuring the guitar was in tune. Then with impressive skill she began to pluck the notes of Nothing Else Matters. Her fingers skillfully danced across the strings as she lightly tapped a beet with her right foot and began to softly sing the lyrics. The sound filled the room both with music and a calming atmosphere. As she finished her first tune she moved on to the next then another. Signum happily moved from song to song as she enjoyed passing each note across the strings. When Hayate finally called out from the kitchen the knight had played through over five songs. Signum carefully returned her guitar to its resting place then went to join her family at the table. As she passed the couch she realized Garand was out cold, he had fallen asleep.

A moment later Agito fluttered down from upstairs followed by Zafira, drawn in by the dinner call. When the red haired sprite saw the PMC sound asleep the small girl grinned. Floating over to the sleeping man she deliberated on what mischief she could stir up for maximum amusement.

"Does anyone have a permanent marker?" She asked smiling ear to ear.

"Agito," Signum called with a frown.

"What?" Agito asked innocently.

"Leave him be and come eat," Signum instructed.

Soon Shamal joined them aswell and the Yagami family sat down together to enjoy their meal. Across the table they bantered and talked. Shared the events of their days and joked. Throughout the meal Signum thought on what Winchester had told her. If she was going to talk about her troubles to anyone her best and only option was Shamal. However, she felt badly about what happened earlier that day. Shamal had inquired back at the hospital about what was bothering her but she lied, trying to evade the issue. Now though, she realized that had not been the best choice.

After dinner Shamal excused herself and went to the study. Signum, stayed behind and helped Hayate clean up. When she was finished she went to look for Shamal in the study.

The Sword Knight gently wrapped on the closed door, "Shamal can I come in?"

"Signum?" Shamal called from beyond the door, "Of course come in."

The sword knight opened the door and found Shamal sitting on a small sofa in the center of the room reading a paperback book. Across from her was a coffee table and past that, a second matching sofa. Signum took the seat across from her family member. For a few moments the pink haired woman tapped her fingertips together in her lap mustering the resolve to once again expose her mental state to another person. Then almost as if it had been planned each of the two women called the others name to start a conversation. In turn both were surprised. There was then a short pause until Shamal broke the silence.

"You first," she said with a smile.

Authors notes:

No I'm not dead, though I could be undead. It would certainly explain why I'm slow. I mean ever seen a zombie type? It's not pretty. Any way, I wanted to present a good amount of character development on Signum in this chapter while moving things forward. I think I did a decent job with this but let me know if you think other wise, or if I just buggered my spelling again. As always feel free to dump your input into my comments section.


	21. Chapter 21

Authors Note:

For those of you who are curious and the few that have asked directly, no I am not going to drop this story. I will finish it, even if it takes me a few years. _;

Verossa Acous, a TSAB Inspector. He and those like him were an unusual lot. Inspectors had no uniforms, procedures, or rank. While they technically fell under the blanket of the Enforcers, Inspectors were not directly linked to their chain of command. Also their mission out line was so vague one could say they were permitted to do whatever they wished. The simple version of their mandate is to protect TSAB and TSABs allies from any internal subversive 'threats'. Inspectors are skilled in an array of fields, infiltration, investigation, subterfuge, intelligence gathering, even assassination. Although none will admit to the last point. The group was often at odds with the larger organization, known as the TSAB Intelligence Service, TIS. Originally they were created for undercover investigations into organized crime. Inspectors were later reorganized into an internal investigation entity after exposing major acts of corruption within TSAB. Charges that were all found to be connected with various major criminal groups. Trained to work alone with no resources beyond what they could acquire on their own. They tended to be on par with skilled TIS Operators. However they are fewer and often underfunded. To be an inspector required a great deal of dedication and willingness to leave any semblance of a normal life behind.

Acous had always wanted to be a hero when he was young. Although, he did not want to go after the small fry or simply react to threats. No, he wanted to chase down the 'Evil Masterminds' and drag them into the light. He knew from the start his carrier choice would be hard and thankless, because the involvement of Inspectors in any operation was always kept secret in order to preserve TSAB's public image. None of that bother Acous though. He loved his job. The man fully believed what he did in his line of work was for the good of all. Even more important than that was a simple truth. He was very good at what he did. He could handle even the most impossible of situations and still get the job done, a fact he was proud of. The situation Garand presented him with this morning however was a little different than his usual tasking. It was a small, simple matter to find the child's home and return her to it. An easy task for the likes of him but one that he still held pride in. It was a rare occasion he would get a clear cut, black and white job. He was the good guy, something he seemed to find himself being less and less lately.

There was however something odd about the girls case. When he went digging through the Mid-Childa Citizen Data Registry he found no trace if her existence, initially. Not until he played out a rather obvious hunch. What he discovered was the Registry had been tampered with. He managed to restore her personal information and find her home, but for some reason he could find nothing on her family. In the end he left the completion of the case up to the Enforcers. He had to carry on with his primary mission. Finding out the reasons and culprits behind the Reserve Base attack and how Sierra equipment came into their possession.

Acous sat at his 'desk' a table in a trendy little coffee shop. Sipping his warm black beverage, he reviewed the data at his disposal. He had no actual office. In fact, not a single Inspector kept a proper office. Some even went so far as to not even have a home, they simply lived out of hotels. At the moment he was using his device as a personal computer terminal as he sorted through the information he had gathered on a pair of holographic screens. The Inspectors special ability's technically negated his need for a device but he kept one regardless. They were, after all, useful tools. Acous currently focused on the origin of the CPU Garand had brought him. After searching through the manufacturing records of numerous computer companies he found a lead. The part was a new type of processor intended for use in a DNA Sequencer. The sequencer in question was a new type still under development and had not yet been released by the manufacturer. What stood out most about the information was the name of the company developing the machine, Rickard Solutions. This was the second time he had come across the name. The first time had been when he looked into the owner of the smugglers airfield at Garand's request. To have the same company name appear a second time at another secret installation, it was clear this was not a matter of coincidence. The information made him wonder if he could find other such instances of equipment under development ending up in unsavory hands.

"Mr. Pink," a man's voice called addressing Acous.

Acous glanced to his right and saw a man of small stature in a black suite, "Mr. Orange," he answered with a small smirk.

"Did you get my message?" The other Inspector asked.

"I did, so what is it you want to know exactly," Acous asked as Mr. Orange sat down.

"The church that your man infiltrated," he started, "Did he find any signs that others were kept there?"

"I was told there were others there at one point but it seems they were all reduced," Acous told the man indicating the girl was the only survivor.

Mr. Orange leaned back in his seat and thought for a moment, "I don't suppose you have any video footage from the facility?"

Acous shook his head.

"Damn, I'll have to go myself then."

"What's going on?" Acous asked with clear interest.

Mr. Orange leaned forward, "For a few years I've been looking into a string of disappearances."

"What string of disappearances?" Acous asked not recalling any such events in recent memory.

"Exactly," Orange told him, "Some time back I ran across a human smuggling ring on an administration world. Nothing all that odd, it happens sometimes. When I looked more closely though. I realized something interesting. Some of the people we had rescued were TSAB mages who had been declared dead. Others appeared to have had their identities erased like your young friend."

"What about the traffickers'?" Acous asked.

"We never caught them but," Orange paused and glanced around, "Guess where we found them?"

"A Saints Church."

"Abandoned, but yes. What's more the variety of people there was not normal for human traffickers. We are talking women, men, children, elderly, mages of various skills and power levels even non mages, it was more like. . ."

Acous jumped in, "A test group."

Orange nodded, "Ever since I've been chasing ghosts trying to find these traffickers again. I've been looking into this case off and on but I've never been able to find anything. Then I hear about your damsel in distress."

"So the short story is you want the location of the church."

Orange nodded and Acous complied with Oranges request and gave him what he asked for, "You think this is related to UD don't you?" Acous asked.

"I do," Orange answered flatly, "I'll let you know what I find out. One last thing, in light of what you found this might be relevant. After the JS indecent I ran a check on the number of KIA's and MIA's. It was all accurate with no discrepancies as far as I could tell 94 KIA and 23 MIA exactly."

"I remember, highest losses TSAB had incurred in a single event in ten years. It's why they created Sierra."

"Indeed," Orange raised his index finger, "Here's the thing though 254 families requested death benefits and received it, no hassle."

"So where did the other 137 come from?"

Orange shrugged, "My ghosts must have gotten to them," He replied as he stood, "Until next time Mr. Pink."

After Orange departed Acous took the time to finish his coffee then decided it was time to carry out some leg work. The best way for him to make progress now was to interrogate the ones who attacked the reserve base. Although in truth, he had no intention of asking any questions. Why ask anything at all when he could rip the information from the perpetrators minds with his unique skill. Actually there was a nick name for him that floated around. One only a brazen few would call him aloud, the Brain Rapist. It did not help Acous's reputation when he openly admitted it was an accurate description of what he did. On more than one occasion he had even gone so far as to leave his subject permanently 'damaged' in one way or another.

The prisoners were being held at a TSAB military stockade not far away so he was on site in little time. When he arrived he received an unpleasant reception. Acous's friendly smile and laid back tones displeased the guards making them believe he had little interest in preforming his duties. He even took the time to make passes at a few of the female guards which further mangled the impression he was giving off. Although in reality, this was simply a result of Acous's carefully crafted persona. The man with the green hair was unavoidably attractive and stood out in a crowd. This point was for any Intelligence Operative or Inspector, a major disadvantage. Standing out was never good when you're trying to covertly conduct an investigation, but Acous had found a way around this dilemma. Taking a page from the lives of fictional spies he did not try to hide what he was. Instead he waved it in people's faces while playing the part of a philandering fool. As far as anyone outside the Inspectors knew, he was bad at his job and spent most of his time trying to seduce every pretty face he came across. This fabricated personality had garnished him some renown with in TSAB creating a bad reputation, exactly as he had intended.

With some convincing and flashing his credentials, Acous got himself a meeting with the officer in charge of the stockade. A round man with not much hair greeted him, "What can I do for you Inspector?" He was clearly displeased with his guest.

"I want access to the prisoners from yesterday's attack," the Inspector requested in a disinterested tone.

The officer smirked, "They aren't here. They have all been transferred to a proper high security location," he said clearly happy to disappoint.

"So where are they now?" Acous asked scratching the back of his neck.

"Piper Correctional," the officer replied, "I have to say I'm surprised the likes of you are working this investigation. Shouldn't TSAB send someone more reliable?"

"They did, but you know I have to earn my pay to like everyone else, that and well," he said with a sigh, "Somebody's shoved a red-hot poker up our ass, and I want to know whose name is on the handle," Acous's tone became slightly darker as he spoke allowing a bit of his real personality shine through.

As he left the office he mulled over what the officer had told him. It did not make sense. According to records the prisoners should still be at this facility. It is possible for transfer paper work to be a day or so late. However, when such a high profile case is involved the paper work should have been handled with kid gloves to ensure no mistakes were made. As the strangeness of the transfer began to make Acous suspicious he encountered Fate Harlaown in the hall.

"Fate," he called out with a smile, "You must be here for the same reason I am."

"Probably," she replied, "Did you learn anything?"

Acous sighed, "I never got the chance. It seems they've all been moved."

"This soon? That's a bit strange," Fate folded her arms across her chest, "Where were they sent?"

"Piper Correctional," he told her flatly.

"Piper? Why there, it's off Mid-Childa it will make access a pain."

Acous knew Fate was an intelligent and skilled Enforcer. He had to watch what he told her in order to prevent her from stepping on his toes later, "It's likely to make it just as hard for anyone wanting to free them from gaining access."

Fate sighed clearly exasperated, "I guess I'll just have to wait, not the best way to start an investigation."

Acous shrugged, "Your right but sadly the likes of us don't always get a say in how things are done. All we can do is adapt."

"I suppose I'll go back to the scene. Maybe I can find something that was missed, Take care Acous," she told the Inspector with a wave as she walked back the way she came.

"You too," Acous paused in the hall.

Fate was not a person he was particularly liked or trusted. It was a matter of poor first impressions. During her earlier days as an Enforcer she had on numerous occasions, stepped on his toes to disastrous effect. At first he thought it was a simple coincidence until one day when she flat out arrested him on charges of corruption. It was all part of a small 'Incident' that was kept secret. The short version was Fate had been duped into tracking down and identifying a large number of Inspectors in order to 'arrest' them on corruption charges. In truth a large scale syndicate was manipulating the Enforcers chain of command. This was in order to kill off the inspectors that had caused them so much grief over the past few years. The worst part of the affair was Fate failed to notice obvious signs of what was really happening. It took considerable effort on his part to bring her around a make her understand what was really going on. While the incident was eventually resolved successfully, Acous had forever classified Fate as someone easily manipulated and only worthy a small portion of his trust and little else. Although, he easily kept friendly relations with her since it was better than burning the bridge.

Acous soon started walking back to his car deciding to head to Piper. He would board the first interdenominational flight out and be waiting with a smile for the prisoners. However he had the nagging concern that something was amiss. He was wondering if they would even make it to Piper at all.


	22. Chapter 22

Author's note; I know, I know, I'm horribly slow with updates. What can I say? I'm easily distracted. Any way read a review if you're up for it, please.

Garand sat upright on the couch as his body's internal clock indicated he had reached eight hours sleep. He looked around the room, one eye half closed the other wide open. It was still dark except for the dull glow of a street lamp outside the house. The PMC tried to open his other eye all the way only to have his other eye lid sag in its place. Rising to his feet he glanced to the kitchen and saw a clock on the stove, it read 0400. The tall man sauntered over to the kitchen table. Waiting for him was a plate of curry covered by a pot lid. Attached was a small note. Enjoy your breakfast, Hayate, it said. A small happy face in the bottom corner had also been added for good measure. He lifted the pot lid and sat down though the food was room temperature it did not deter him. He happily dove in fork first, despite curry not being a normal morning meal. Once he finished eating he silently slipped out of the house headed towards the base.

The PMC spent the early hours of the day working in the machine shop. As Garand labored he the thought about what Hayate would choose as their next step. His assumption was he and Signum were, for the time being, finished playing detective. From now Acous would be the one prowling around looking for clues, until of course the need for the messy approach arose.

By the time Hayate arrived along with the others Garand had made impressive progress many of the parts that had been strewn about the table were now fixed to the aft end of the two and a quarter meter long device. The fore end however remained a bare metal frame.

Hayate smiled at the PMC, "Good morning Mr. Garand, did you enjoy your breakfast?"

"Yes ma'am," he replied sharply.

"I was a little concerned you might empty the refrigerator," Signum commented with a smirk from behind Hayate.

"I'm a badger not a pig," The PMC protested with a chuckle. As Hayate, and Signum sat down across from Garand at the large work bench, He noticed that Signum's expression was a little 'lighter' than it had be for the past few weeks, for now though he chose not to comment on it.

Trailing behind the two women were Vice, who was escorting a certain silver haired petite woman with one yellow eye and eye patch on her right side. Bringing up the rear was Enfield. Once they were all seated Garand put down his tools. He looked across at the child sized young woman, immediately noting her resemblance to a doll.

"So you're Cinque. You're much smaller than I imagined," the PMC remarked holding up one hand with his thumb and fore finger close together in a gesture of size.

"And you are far uglier than I expected, the world is full disappointment. I would think a man like yourself would be used to that by now," she replied with a smirk.

Garand laughed loudly, "I like it! We are definitely keeping her! Perhaps in a shoe box!"

"She's not a pet Garand," Signum told him with a sigh, "You on the other hand. Well, we should probably get a leash for you," she said with a smile.

Hayate placed her index finger on her cheek and tilted her head to one side, "You know that might not be such a bad idea," from her tone it seemed she was seriously considering the idea.

"I think that would be for the best," Cinque with a chuckle.

Suddenly the conversation was interrupted by Enfield loudly clearing his throat.

"Right, work," Garand blurted out, "But where's the other cyborg?"

"She won't be coming," Cinque told him, "Dieci turned down the request. She didn't feel comfortable with it."

"Well we'll just have to do without then," Garand reached a hand across to the cyborg, "Welcome to the unit," Cinque took it firmly giving it a shake.

"I suppose I should start the explanations then," Hayate told the group, "As you know this new unit will be a Special Operations Group designed around counter mage operations," her expression darkened slightly, "However this is not the full scope of our mission intent."

Garand held up is hand in a stop gesture, "Wait a sec, Yagami," he said abruptly anticipating that he would not agree with the release of information she was about to make.

She ignored him, "I need a unit with people loyal and trust worthy to carry out operations, against what remains of the Unlimited Desire program," Everyone was a little surprised by Hayate's declaration. They all remained silent as she carried on, "I have reason to believe elements left over from the program are still active and may be stealing assets from our project."

"Ma'am," Enfield began, "Shouldn't such things be left to the Inspectors or Enforcers?"

"They are handling it," Hayate told the old Master Sargant, "But we will be dealing with the necessary tactical operations associated with the investigation."

Cinque leaned forward, resting her arms on the work bench, "I always had the feeling there were a lot more people involved in UD than just Regius Gaiz and the High Council. How else could they have created someone like Scaglietti and kept us so well supplied."

Yagami nodded, "These, remnants, are likely behind the protest bombings as well as other incidents that have occurred since."

Enfield snorted disapproving of the mere existence of these Remnants, "So we are going after Insurgents and Traitors then? That explains why you need a unit you can trust."

Vice leaned against the chain link inner wall of the shop, "Wait doesn't that mean we could end up going after TSAB personnel directly?"

"There is that possibility," Hayate admitted, "But we have an obligation to stand up for what TSAB represents even if that means going after fellow members of the organization," the young officer rested her arms on the work bench, "When we took our oaths to TSAB we swore loyalty to those ideals and to the group as a hole. However if the group has lost sight of those ideal it is the responsibility of those who still follow them to correct the others," finishing with a smile she added one last point, "Although as I mentioned this is all just a possibility, it's not certain yet."

Enfield glared at Hayate, "I'll participate, but I have issues with us using an Ex-con for the operation."

"Actually," Garand interrupted, "She's still serving her sentence. When she's not with one of us she has to stay in the brig."

"Semantics," Enfield barked, "She is not trust worthy."

Cinque said nothing in her defense, although Garand had something to say, "Just cause you're a Con doesn't mean you're not trust worthy, just means you got caught."

"Coming from someone who's little more than a mercenary that's not reassuring," Enfield returned.

"Sargent Major," Hayate cut in, "I'm not asking you to trust her right away just work with her and make your decision as we progress."

Enfield snorted an affirmative response.

Vice raised a hand, "Conspiracies aside, this isn't going to be easy. Garand and I are the only ones experienced in advanced firearms handling. With just us two and over 60 candidates, training might be an issue."

"It'll be fine," Garand assured, "I took that into account when I wrote up the coarse plan. We'll divide the trainees into sections of 12 and each of us will train them according to the fields we are most familiar with. Vice will handle marksman ship, Signum will handle close quarters battle, Cinque will take care of demolitions, intelligence gathering and infiltration, Enfield will handle the PT and I'll take care of advanced fire arms handling along with unit tactics."

"Excuse me but I have a question," Cinque called, "What's this talk about firearms?"

Hayate quickly answered, "We've spent the past year developing small arms for use against mages."

Cinque looked surprised, "Do they work?"

"They do," Hayate answered, "We actually finished development and our job now is to field the new equipment. In addition we have created body armor that emits an AMF field capable of nullifying repeated magical attacks."

"It sounds impressive," Cinque concluded.

Garand nodded, "Damn right it is!"

Hayate started to hand out binders from a box she had left tucked under the table the night before. Each contained the component of the coarse out line relevant to each person, "I want you to all read these over by Monday, when we start training," the young officer rose to her feet, "First though I should show our two new members around the hanger," Cinque and Enfield then both stood and followed Hayate.

"Well I guess I'll see how the preparations to receive the trainees are going," Vice said also leaving a machine shop.

For a long while Signum and Garand sat alone in the shop without saying a word until the sword knight broke the silence, "You were right."

"I am always right!" Garand barked with a smile, "Any way it's good to see you're looking better off today."

Signum nodded, "I'm still far from being fine honestly, but at least now I feel like there's a solution. Talking with Shamal also helped."

"You're welcome," he added puffing out his chest.

Signum frowned skeptically, "What did you do to warrant thanks?"

"I suggested to Shamal that she speak to you."

The sword knight shrugged dismissively, "I was going to speak to her regardless."

"Bah, on a different note, earlier I got the impression Enfield doesn't like you," Garand told the knight as he rocked back on his stool.

Signum glanced over her shoulder in Enfield's general direction, "It's not just me. I don't think he is fond of any of the Wulkinritter. Thankfully he's the type not to allow his personal feelings to affect his work relations," she smirked, "Unlike some one I know."

"Hey we all have our short comings, mine just happens to wear a dress," The PMC leaned forward and rested his elbows on the bench, "So why the bad blood?"

"You remember the Book of twilight Indecent I told you about. The story of how I and the others met Hayate."

"Yeah."

"When we were gathering magic to charge the book, he was one of the mages who came after us. His unit caught us by surprise and they captured Shamal and at the same time he nearly took my head off with a long distance shooting spell," the knight clearly seemed to be exaggerating a bit but what soldier didn't? It made for better stories after all, "Fortunately Vita and Zafira were nearby and we defeated them easily after they lost their advantage."

"So it's a grudge between old enemies," Garand commented with an understanding nod.

"It's more than just that," she told him sounding a little displeased with herself, "When we pulled the magic from his linker core it was damaged, eventually his core just stopped recovering it's magical charge."

"Damn, I can definitely see how he'd be pissed at you. I look forward to seeing the arguments you two will get into," Garand said with a smirk.

The knight frowned, "Silence Badger," suddenly she shifted to an exasperated look and changed subjects, "I'm not looking forward to being an instructor. Teaching is not one of my strong points."

"Don't sweat it," The PMC told her with a wave of his hand, "Experience is the best teacher and you're going to give them one hell of an experience. All you need to do is kick their asses, tell them what they did wrong then repeat," he told her with a grin, "Speaking of experience. I find it rather offensive a junior officer like Takamachi is aloud anywhere near a combat coarse. There's no way I'd ever follow her to a picnic let alone war zone. Yagami on the other hand I like," he told Signum with a smile, "I don't think highly of the fact that a nine year old kid was forced into military service. Although I can kind of understand it. I mean if you can depopulate a planet with a gesture someone is going to want to keep you on a leash for safeties sake. Despite that though, she's come out pretty well."

"Don't you know?" Signum asked a little surprised.

"Know what?" Garand asked.

"Nanoha has been in and out of combat for a little over ten years. Both she and Fate have been TSAB members for just as long. Hayate as well, she's also seen a lot of combat from a young age."

"A Nine year old front line soldier? Come on you're pulling my leg. Maybe if this was Africa I would believe you." He told her squinting one eye and shaking his head.

"I'm serious," she told him, "It's actually not that strange really."

Signum was going to continue her explanation but Garand stopped her, "You're serious?" He asked rhetorically. With a look of confused anger he opened his mouth but nothing came out as he was to taken aback to form a proper thought. After a few try's, true to form, he barked his reply, "What kind of fucked up shit! You're telling me TSAB uses child soldiers? What sick fuck okayed that regulation!"

Signum tried to offer an explanation but realized she did not have one that would not worsen his angered state.

He suddenly rose to his feet flinging his hands into the air, "Jesus, Marry and Fucking Joseph. I thought this was supposed to be an advanced civilization, how the fuck does a government allow this kind of messed up shit? God damn it! I better not have to shoot any more fucking kids! No wonder Rabbit is so fucked up!"

While Signum listened to his rant steadily get worse she realized the hanger had gotten oddly silent. The knight stood up and was about to firmly ask him to stop when Hayate beat her to the punch.

"Garand," the young officer called, "That's enough, calm down please," she requested using a soothing non-confrontational tone.

The PMC tossed a hostel glare at Hayate only for the moment it took for facial recognition to kick in, "Yes ma'am," he barked still angry.

"He is right though," Enfield added firmly.

Hayate sighed, "I know he's right."

"And you're okay with this ma'am?" Garand asked forcing his anger back down into the hole in his mind it crawled out of.

"No," she said flatly looking the PMC coldly in the face, "But as things stand I'm not in a possession to change anything, yet."

Garand caught a meaning, buried shallow within Hayate's statement and calmed down, "So is there a decent reason TSAB allows this?" He asked leaning back against the work bench.

"Mages," Hayate said pausing for a moment, "Mages are very common place among TSAB member worlds. So the use of magic is by no means extraordinary. However, when you show an advanced aptitude or have a large capacity linker core you are given a choice, join TSAB or have your power sealed. In the case of minors there's a loop hole that allows TSAB to force them into service. The short version is since minors are not age of consent they have no real say in the decision. So TSAB can label them a threat to public safety and conscript them. Parents or Guardians can challenge the decision but they usually loose."

"And the public is okay with this kind of thing?" He asked hoping to find some measure of sanity.

Cinque who had been observing the exchange jumped in with the answer to Garand's question, "Enough to keep the law from changing. Not many will say it, but the reality is TSAB treats mages like weapons systems not people. Not to mention it makes people feel 'safer' if TSAB is in control of all the powerful mages," she glanced over at Hayate, "I imagine you weren't actually given a choice at all."

Hayate shook her head.

"God damn it, can't believe I didn't pick up on this until now," the PMC growled.

Cinque gave a reluctant smirk, "It's not exactly a popular topic of discussion. At least you know now though."

"Yeah, well it's still fucked up," the PMC looked over a Hayate with an expression she could not quite identify, "No offense Ma'am but you're fucked, just as fucked as Takamachi and Harlown. Hell one day all of you may end up as broken as me."

"What do you mean?" Hayate asked confused but calm.

"Just trust me you need to get out of the military ASAP or you'll end very badly. Hell, just ask Sig she's seen enough child soldiers to know what happens to them in the end," Garand was holding his voice back from its normal loudness but it was still clear he was upset.

"Garand," she told him, "We're different. Myself, Nanoha and Fate had the support of family and friends. We have always been treated well. We're not like the child soldier you are familiar with. No one abused us or threatened us."

"You're not getting it," Garand told her.

"I am, I know it's," she was suddenly cut off by the PMC's louder voice.

"That's enough," he said walking towards her, "You can say you're fine as many times as you want," he looked down at her and she looked up, "But you aren't," he leaned forward, close to her face and lowered his voice, "The problem is you won't know it until you're knee deep in the blood of friends and civilians. When that happens your only solace will be the pistol on your belt or the bottle of liquor in your hand."

Hayate said nothing she just stared back into his eyes.

Garand took a lazy step back then started to walk past her, "I'm taking a walk need to cool off," he told Hayate patting her shoulder as he passed.

Once outside in the morning air the PMC put his hands in his pockets and took in a deep breath and slowly exhaled. The warm vapor from his breath rose into the air and he watched as it faded away.

"Are you alright?" Signum called walking up behind him, "I wasn't expecting you to go off like that."

Garand scratched the back of his neck, "To be honest I should have figured something like this was the case after hearing how Yagami joined TSAB," he sighed scratching the side of his head, looking displeased with himself.

"You're right you should have," Signum told him with a smirk.

The two stood in silence for a while watching the empty runway. Then, Garand spoke up, "Not going to ask?"

"We've both done bad things Garand. All of which have left us marked. I know better than to do that. Besides I think it's pretty self-explanatory," the sword knight then slightly altered the topic, "About what you said to Hayate."

"Yeah, must have sounded pretty nonsensical. I've never been very good at explaining things like that."

"No it's not that," Signum told him, "Honestly I think you might be at least partly right," with a worried look she folded her arms, "I worry about her some times. It scares me a little to think how her carrier may end for her."

The PMC smirked, "You know what we need to go drinking," he decided, "Think we should take the midget?"

"We?" The knight asked skeptically, "Now what bizarre line of logic makes you assume I will join you?"

"That's easy! It's beer logic!"

"That's flawed reasoning if I've ever heard it."

"Come on it'll be fun, we can drag Yagami, Vice and Enfield along too."

Signum chuckled, "Fine but only after you show me the cash for the cab ride home."


	23. Chapter 23

Author's note:

I tried to pack as much as I could into this installment. It actually started as two chapters but I figured I might as glue both together. Let me know what you think. I'm hoping I've made it interesting enough to hold your attention. Guess we'll find out though.

The man in the toque, who had repeatedly engaged Signum and Garand in combat, stepped along the snowy cobble stone path of Cranagan's Hearth Rock Park. The man was largely ignored by the other people who were gathered for an afternoon of recreation. He quickly found himself an empty bench across from a dry, snow cover fountain. Slouching into the seat, he watched a group of children building a snowman on the opposite side of the fountain under the watch of their parents. Among those parents was an old man with a long white beard. The swordsman watched the old man as his sleeves of his brown overcoat were tugged at buy two of the children. The well-aged man gave them a slow head shake indicating he could not follow. His old bones were not quite up for the task.

As the children darted away the old man sent out a telepathic communication to the swordsman, 'How are the gunshot wounds?' he was using his device to send a direct beam transmission to the other man's device, this way it could not be intercepted, unless you walked between them.

The swordsman shifted. The reminder of the wounds seeming to nag at his body, 'Healed,' he told him flatly, 'but the Phantom Pain is still proving a nuisance.'

'The price for a faster recovery,' the old man answered, 'Once upon a time injuries like that would have killed you but thanks to devices, magic, and barrier jackets, in just 48 hours you were healed. A week of Phantom Pain is a small price to pay for all that.'

'So why did you call me here? I thought you said we shouldn't meet in person unnecessarily.'

'Some things are better discussed in person. For instance, the destruction of one of our hangers and the discovery of our facility beneath the Saints Church, both attacks carried out by pairs of skilled individuals. I want your honest opinion on the matter.'

The swordsman sighed seemingly relieved, yet still on guard, ready for anything. He knew the old man was a dangerous eccentric. If he hadn't been, he would never have reached his current post, 'My guess is someone is interested in what we are doing. A skilled shooter with access to AMS weapons and AMF armor, along with a man using Neo Belkan swordsmanship.' he told the old gentleman not having realized the swordsman he had been Signum, 'If I had to guess, I would assume the same two were responsible for both incidents. As for who they are, I would assume they belong to one of the factions we leaked the project Sierra data to.'

The old man slowly walked over to a bench and sat down, 'What about their intentions?'

'So far it appears they are trying to disrupt our operations. Or perhaps their goal was the securing of the Sample from the lab.'

The gentleman nodded slightly, 'The sample from the church was recently returned to her home and is being watched by the Inspectors. This means your last assumption is the most logical one. However, we should not assume that those two will not appear before us again. Caution should take precedence until we can verify more about the pair. So, for the moment, we will abandon any attempts to secure the sample again.'

'I suppose we could always go after Vivio Takamachi again. She's apparently the better candidate any way.'

'With all that has happened as a result of the downtown attack we are suspending her acquisition as well. Too much risk is involved at the moment.'

'Speaking of the attack, has any new information come through?' He asked chancing the possibility the old mastermind might hold a few answers.

The old man's face contorted into an aged frown, 'No, when we leaked the data on Sierra we expected, even planned for a rise in incidents. Something like that though, was well beyond what we had expected,' the man released his frown as he continued, 'The confusion it caused is undeniable though. The Enforcers and Inspectors are out for blood. So no amount of pressure on their command structure can alter that now. As a result we've been forced to tread more carefully while still trying to step up our time table.'

The swordsman could not help but doubt the old man's supposed lack of knowledge regarding the bombings, but said nothing further on the matter, 'Why not just feed them a scape goat?' He snickered, 'You could always put Lt. Takamachi on the chopping block. She's going to get in our way eventually any way. Not to mention, from the rumors I've been hearing, she's not exactly right in the head. So I doubt it would take much to convince the Enforcers.'

The old man snorted, 'No one would believe such a farce.'

'Well do they have any suspects?'

'No names or organizations have been brought to light. However, somehow the Enforcers have it in their heads someone within TSAB preformed the attack.'

The swordsman sneered sarcastically behind his scarf, recalling his early thought. Inevitably this lead to a slip of the tongue, 'Maybe their right,' suddenly realizing what he had done he readied himself for any, possibly violent, repercussions.

The old man's frown returned, 'We are trying to enact a sweeping reform of TSAB, to change it into what it needs to be. While some sacrifices are needed there are limits. Besides, you people agreed with that did you not?' a stern displeased tone echoed into the swordsman mind. The gentleman then calmed his voice and carried on, 'Oh,' he said abruptly, 'I nearly forgot the entire reason why I really called you here,' he noted with a small smile, 'I want you to make preparations to kill Carim Gracia," he told the swordsman in a calm friendly tone, his mouth still showing a slight smile.

For an instant the swordsman was struck silent, 'You want me to kill one of the directors of TSAB?'

'That is exactly right,' his answer still sounding calm and friendly, 'Oh don't worry I'm not telling you to do it now,' the old man chuckled a little, 'These things take time. As long as it is done within the next four months that will be fine. Just be sure you don't pass your time limit please.'

The swordsman frowned, 'Something tells me if I ask why you're not going to answer, are you?'

The old man chuckled again, 'I knew you could be as smart as your brother if you tried.'

The swordsman rose to his feet, 'You never make this easy do you,' he paused for a moment and decided to dare a question. 'Tell me what would you do if you had to sacrifice one of your grandchildren?'

The old man answered with the same small smile and friendly tone, 'If it was necessary to meet our goal I would sacrifice all of them.'

The tone of the man's voice froze the swordsman right down to his core, 'Saints almighty, you really are a cold man Mr. Kiel.'

'One more thing before you leave.'

The swordsman stopped in his tracks as if caught red handed, 'What is it?' He asked ready to make a mad dash, just in case.

'Your attack on the reserve base was very well done and thanks to that a traitor was removed from our midst. Although we still haven't decoded the data packet he was carrying. Regardless though, good work,' he sincerely complimented.

* * *

Hayate surveyed the faces of the men and woman who made up the potential members of the Anti-Magic Combat Section. Though it did not show on her face, the young officer felt a bit dismayed. Her self-introduction was not entirely well received by the troops. Upon explaining her role as their CO, the faces of many of them soured, betraying thoughts of disapproval, especially in the senior members. It was a clear case of poor preconceptions. To them she seemed to be no more than a young upstart officer looking to make a name for herself. Beyond that, Hayate was pleased with what she saw. The hardened faces of her new troops gave her confidence in their potential. So she was more than willing to overlook the first impressions. The real work would now be gaining their trust and respect. With the recent events swirling around herself and TSAB she needed a combat effective team that she could rely on, one hundred percent. Sadly, trying to call together the old Section 6 members was out of the question. Doing so would have raised too much attention from TSAB Command. Besides that, she knew for a fact any attempt to restart her old unit would be stone walled. No, until she met her goals Section Six would stay disbanded.

Time however, was finite and gaining what she needed from the new unit had to be done quickly. This was one of the additional reasons she had acquired Garand. The man knew exactly how to achieve what Hayate required. His coarse plan was more than just a set of instructions for training the new unit as operators. It also included a carefully planned out set of events that would enhance the troop's opinion of Hayate. Things such as having her bail them out of trouble, stand in their corner when they would inevitably but heads with TSAB mages, even when to buy them beer. The entire out line was an imaginative and easily flexible master peace of training. It was so well thought out it made the young officer curious. Perhaps her sometimes slightly unhinged badger was more than he appeared.

With the introductions over she stepped back and watched her subordinates go to work. Garand, as head instructor, quickly took charge, barking out commands telling the troops to march off in single file into to the hanger so they could be issued their kit. As they carried on, Hayate glanced over at Cinque who was standing next to her wearing the same unmarked Multi-cam uniform as Garand, indicating she was not officially TSAB military. The small woman let a look of apprehension slip across her face as the troops left. Hayate felt a little bad for her. The silver haired woman had gotten just as rough a reaction as she had. After all when you introduce someone who could be mistaken for a twelve year old as a military instructor most people take it as a joke. Sufficed to say it was not, and it garnished more than a few groans. It took some angry worlds from Sargent Major Enfield before they clamped their mouths. At this point Hayate was just relieved none of them had realized that Cinque was a former member of JS's Cyborg unit. If anyone had realized, it would have caused instant friction and she could not have that. The rest of here subordinates however, received the normal neutral response one would expect.

Hayate took a moment to speak with the small cyborg, "Cinque thank you again for volunteering for this. I know you didn't have to."

"It's the least I can do to make up for what I've done," she folded her arms, "and it's more productive than spending the last year of my sentence in prison."

There was a short awkward silence between the two. Neither one certain what else to say, "Can I ask something?" Hayate ventured.

"What is it?" The small woman responded.

"Why did you decide to serve your full sentence? If you had taken up the Nakajima's offer for custody you could have been released on parole in just a year."

Cinque frowned looking disappointed, "I'm sorry Yagami, I don't want to talk about it," looking up at Hayate she dawned a small smile, "I promise though, I will put everything I have into this unit."

Hayate nodded approvingly, "Maybe you can tell me another time?"

"Maybe," she said glancing away for a moment, "I was a bit surprised though. None of the recruits recognized who I was," she said trying to divert the topic, "It makes me wonder if these people are as good of candidates as Mr. Garand seems to think they are."

"TSAB chose to disclose only very limited information about you and your sisters. So it's not that surprising they did not recognize you," Hayate explained, "However, we'll have to address it eventually, but I'm sure it will work out fine," she started walking to the hanger, "We should get going as well,"

Cinque nodded following close behind.

Inside each potential was issued a plate carrier, helmet, rifle, side arm, two pairs of boots and three Multi-Cam uniforms, all bearing small TSAB patches. Once again they all formed up on the hanger floor in three ranks their duffle bags filled with their new gear lying next to them.

Garand then addressed them, "Ladies and gentlemen welcome to the first day of the worst seven weeks of your lives! Here you will learn, sweat, and bleed! All of you have experience as front line troops, but as of now all of that means fuck all!" He began pacing in front the unit, "You will all relearn how to fight from scratch, from now on you are no longer mages. You are all maggots and you are all equally shit. That is, until you pass this course and make no mistake not all of you will make it," A snide grin crossed his face, "And just to be clear, you should all be aware we've planned for a few fatalities and injuries during the training."

The troops murmured amongst each other, some looked worried. The idea that someone could die during mere training was completely alien to them. Certainly injury was normal but was this new training really that brutal? However, a few appeared almost exited as if this was what they had hoped to hear from the start. The hushed discussion amongst the ranks quickly became more pronounced. However, the Sargent Major quickly ended the chatter.

"Shut your shit holes!" He ordered.

Garand continued once silence and order had been restored, "You may quit at any time but," he looked sternly into the eyes of every soldier before him, "There will be no second chances. If you quit or wash out you are done and will never be allowed back, clear?"

"Yes, Sir!" they called in unison.

Garand folded his arms across his chest, "Well then one last order of business before we begin. I know many of you don't think highly of Major Yagami or Ms. Cinque so let me clarify. The Major has a little over ten years of front line combat experience and is over S class. She's also the former head of Section 6. So yes she knows what she is doing. As for Ms. Cinque she's a highly skilled in demolitions, infiltration and Advanced AMF applications. She can also put a knife between your eyes from nearly one hundred yards away," truthfully he had no idea how good the young cyborg was at throwing knives but none the less the troops seemed to buy the yarn any way, "As for her combat experience, she's former Op For Affiliated with Jail Scaglietti, hence why she's our AMF specialist."

Hayate put her palm over her face and shook her head. She was hoping to avoid causing friction by revealing the cyborgs identity this soon. However, Garand seemed to have a different idea. The young officer glanced over at Signum hoping the knight would run some damage control. Instead Hayate saw her with a small smirk shaking her head, as if she had expected this. Realizing she would have to salvage the situation herself, the young officer took a step forward. Suddenly, she stopped when one of the men in the front rank called out loudly.

"So she's not our mascot?" A lanky dark haired corporal asked snidely.

Cinque folded her arms briefly then walked up the man who was standing in the front rank of the formation. He was much taller than she was, forcing her to tilt her head back to look dis-pleasured into his eyes. Then, with no warning, she smiled at him driving her clenched fist into his gut. He doubled over in pain and clutched the site of the blow. It felt as if his organs had been ruptured by the impact. The young man staggered. Then, no longer able to stay up right, collapsed onto his side.

"Odd," the cyborg noted with a smile, "weren't you listening when Mr. Garand explained that we planned for a few fatalities."

The man's face went pale.

At once, Hayate understood Garand's reasoning for reviling Cinque's history. Quickly the young officer seized the chance and came to the Corporals rescue, "Ms. Clinque could you please refrain from killing my trainees unnecessarily," she told her crossly.

"Sorry ma'am," she answered smartly, "I will keep that in mind."

Garand looked at the fallen Corporal, "Come on you pansy get up get on your feet! If a knock from a little girl is enough to take you down you might as well wash out now!"

The rest of the trainees watched the corporal intently as he struggled back onto his feet. Once he was standing again a few smirked as a stocky blonde female sergeant spoke up.

"Don't sweat it kid," she told the dark haired corporal, "Sure you may have gotten beaten down by a little girl, but at least you're not dead."

The trainees chuckled finding the whole matter quite funny. Not one seemed to care that their small instructor had once been an enemy. Hayate listened to the ensuing chatter from the potentials and it appeared their approval of their small cyborg and herself had increased, just a little.

Enfield quickly switched full discipline back on, "That's enough, the lot of you, steady up," instantly all chatter from the ranks ceased.

Garand then began the final phase of his in briefing, "Now I have one last item to issue all of you," the PMC waved over Vice who was pushing a cart. The sniper came to a stop in front of Garand. Reaching over to the cart the tall man picked up a cage holding a rabbit, "Each of you will be given a rabbit. You will name it, feed it and care for it. This may sound ridicules but it holds a purpose," he scanned over the recruits to ensure he had their attention, "This will teach you all what it means to be responsible for a life other than your own. So pick out the one you like."

As the trainees began to file past additional carts that were wheeled in by the support crew that worked in the hanger, Hayate walked over to Signum who was observing, "He planned on that didn't he?" she asked quietly.

Signum smirked, "Of course he did, damned oaf," she paused for a moment then started again, "Hayate, I have to ask, why did you volunteer to head this program? If I didn't know better I would think you wanted to recreate Section Six under a different name."

Hayate clasped her hands behind her back and observed the trainees, "Signum don't you find it odd that TSAB has no standing Special Operations unit or Counter Terrorism Teams? Considering the frequency in which Mid-Childa and its allies fall victim to insurgent and terrorist attacks you would think we would have multiple groups of specialists in this field."

Folding her arms the knight gave her answer, "To be frank I never thought about it. I always assumed the Enforcers dealt with those types of situations."

"They do but only in a reactionary capacity, they have no dedicated specialist units. Even Section Six was only aloud to exist as a temporary unit responding to a known threat," the young officer took in a deep breath trying to force herself to look more at easy than she truly was, "TSAB actually has a series of laws and regulations that disallow the establishment of a standing Special Forces unit. It's not 'normal', especially for a society like ours. I used to think it was a precaution to keep rouge groups of S class mages from appearing in the ranks of TSAB but that can't be the only reason."

Signum was then able to complete Hayate's line of thought, "So then the reason for heading this program is to change that, by using weapons development and the fact these trainees don't have a mage rank above D class as some kind of loop hole?"

Hayate nodded.

"But won't the ACS still be disbanded once the final field testing is done?"

"It won't be disbanded, since no one in TSAB will see a group of 'Black Boots', as a potential danger," she told the knight, "Beside for the moment all I need is to set a new precedence using ACS, to prove a standing force is necessary and beneficial," her voice started to become strangely cold.

"What about their combat effectiveness then? As 'Black Boots' their fairly limited even with this new equipment. Could they even handle a major incident like JS?"

"Signum, if Garand was to seriously fight you do you think you could win?"

Hayate's decision to answer with a question surprised her a little, "That's," the Knight paused sounding a little uncomfortable, "Garand doesn't 'fight'. He pursues his mission intent using the most efficient means that will result in the fewest friendly casualties," Signum focused her gaze on the trainees, trying to cover up her discomfort at the question. She did not care much for the idea of having to fight a friend under the situation Hayate was implying, "If he wanted me dead he would put a bomb in my car or pick me off with a sniper rifle while I was jogging. He wouldn't attack me directly. If he had to come at me head on, he would bring an entire fire team. Honestly if it came to that, I doubt I would come away unscathed assuming I came away at all."

Hayate didn't say anything at first but from her expression Signum gathered she agreed with her answer, "Your right. You and Garand are both skilled soldiers but you have completely different methodologies. It's like comparing a Scalpel to a Chainsaw both are cutting tools but both are still very different."

Signum considered her words for a moment and she understood exactly what Hayate was getting at. The knight herself had said it, "I see, I suppose if they can be trained up to Garand's level they would be a genuine force to be reckoned with."

"Exactly," Hayate told her, "What's more we are training operators not mages. Do you know what that means?" she asked rhetorically, "It means they are replaceable," her tone seemed colder than before as she continued, "Mages like us, genuinely strong mages, we are all one offs. You can't train someone to be like Nanoha, Fate, or myself. Operators though can be trained and replaced as needed; guaranteeing a constantly ready and available force capable of undertaking extreme situations without the need for one offs."

Signum uncross her arms and placed one hand on her hip, "It's a sound concept, but it's one that still needs to be proven."

Hayate nodded and continued in the same cold tone, "Which is exactly what I intend to do."

The Sword Knight stood in silence next to the young officer. A long pause lingered between the two as the last trainees filled past the carts. Signum felt a twinge of sadness deep in her chest from Hayate's cold tone. When the Book of Darkness incident came to a close her hope had been that Hayate would be able choose a simple, quite life. However that was not to be. TSAB refused to leave the young mage be and with her two best friends members of the organization she felt pressured to join as well. Since then Signum had watched as Hayate was forced into one difficult situation after another. On a regular basis the young officer was forced into making progressively harder choices. As the knight watched her over the years, it felt as if her family member's heart was in danger of fading away, especially in moments like this. Then there was her suspicion that Hayate was hiding something dangerous about her goals that she could not share. Signum was suddenly reminded of what Garand had said, about the young officer someday becoming as broken as he was and how she should get out of TSAB, soon.

With all this in mind the Knight said the only thing she could to break the silence. The one thing Signum felt Hayate needed to hear the most, "Hayate I don't know what you're planning, but just remember no matter what happens we're family. I will always trust you and be here to help you."

Hayate's expression immediately brightened and she smiled warmly, "Thank you Signum, I really mean that."

"By the way," the Knight began, intending to change the subject of discussion, "There's something that's bothering me," she said in monotone.

"What is it?"

"Who's the chainsaw me or Garand?"

A Cheshire grin slipped across Hayate's cheeks, "Hmm that's a good question. I'd have to give it some thought."

"You're not going to say it's me are you?"

"What would give you that idea?" she asked innocently.

Signum frowned, "I am not a chainsaw."

"Laevatein might disagree," Hayate added placing her right index finger on her cheek as if thinking on something.

"Jawohl," the device called out playing along with the young officer.

Signum sighed surrendering to Hayate's mischief.


	24. Chapter 24

Authors note: I AM NOT DEAD! Just distracted, so read and review please. I'm really interested in feed back on this chapter so feel free to be as constructively brutal as you wish.

Inspector Acous stood out on the cold taxiway beneath a cloudy grey sky. He was waiting for the transport carrying the prisoners who had perpetrated the recent attack against TSAB.

A voice he vaguely recognized called out from behind, "Inspector Acous."

Acous glanced over his shoulder to see who was calling out to him, "Major Luger," the Inspector immediately took note the Major's young female protégée, "Recruit Magnus," he added with a lecherous grin, "Nice to see you as well."

The young woman said nothing, choosing only to frown.

"What brings TIS out here?" Acous enquired as he returned to observing the empty runway.

"Answers of course, I expect these prisoners hold a great many of them," Luger stepped up next to the inspector and folded his arms, "With all that's happened the last few weeks there is a great deal of concern that a much larger incident is on the horizon. Some of the leaders of this group may be able to shed light on this possibility. Perhaps we could work together?"

"I wouldn't mind," Acous lied, hiding his disinterest in the suggestion, "As long I can borrow Ms. Magnus."

Magnus's face further soured, "Then I suppose we won't be working together then. I have far more important things to do than spend my time with a philandering fool."

Acous shrugged, "That's a shame, but I'm not one to force a lady into an uncomfortable position."

"Pardon me if I don't believe you."

Luger chuckled, "You really should do something about that personality of yours Inspector."

Acous shrugged, "I can't change who I am," the inspector admitted as the sound of aircraft engines grew close to the airfield, "That would be our guests."

The low hanging clouds parted and a large grey transport appeared. A giant four engine military VTOL slowly lumbered down from the sky. The transport touched down on the landing pad at the end of the runway. Prison buses that had been parked behind the trio started their engines and drove towards the transport, escorted by Enforcer patrol cars. The convoy made their way to the 'Hammer Head', an isolated section of Taxiway normally used for loading dangerous goods. Once the large rear ramp of the craft opened aircrew, along with armed mages stepped off. By the time the vehicles reached the aircraft, the crew was ready to offload the prisoners. One by one men and women in irons and orange jumpsuits filed down the ramp and onto the buses.

Deciding to get ready for the imminent interrogations, Acous started to walk back towards the terminal building. He was going to have a lot of work to do if he wanted to extract the information he wanted. His plans for the interrogations however, would not include standard methods. He intended to forcibly rip the intelligence he needed from the minds of these insurgents without so much as a courtesy warning. While he was leaving, Acous was suddenly overcome by a chill, something felt wrong. The ground suddenly trembled as a defining, thunderous sound rushed towards him. As the vibrations beneath his unsteady feet subsided Acous spun around to see what had happened. A cloud of smoke and debris rose into the sky above the airfield. Emergency vehicles rushed towards the 'Hammer head' that was now no more than a smouldering crater. Glancing over at Luger the Inspector saw the man calmly watching the pillar rise without uttering a word. When he finally spoke, it was to his protégé and in a calm, almost uninterested tone.

"Contact the field office and have them send a team to secure the sight," the TIS operative instructed. Quickly he turned to Acous, "Inspector," he stopped. Acous was nowhere in sight. Luger sighed, "I suppose he would have just been a nuisance anyway."

Acous, already back inside the main terminal, was furious, mostly at himself for relying on TSABs ability to protect the prisoners. Damn it, he thought, I can't believe this happened. The inspector angrily ran a hand through his hair. He did not need to wait for the results of an investigation. His gut already knew the answer. The explosives used would turn out to be the same as the ones from the Mid-Childa bombings. Even more troubling was this was not some downtown street corner. It was a secured and well protected airfield. Multiple layers of security on both ends of the transports journey should have caught any hint of an explosive but obviously that had not happened. His best chance for clues now lay within Rickard Solutions. The connections were there, they had to be. Acous was convinced that somehow, the huge conglomerate was playing a significant part in what was happening within TSAB's walls.

* * *

Training, it is the staple of any military unit. For the first week the potentials went through a Spartan gauntlet that was more of a test of their worth than a method to train. For 20 to 22 hours a day they were driven physically and mentally to extremes they never thought existed. This first week distilled the potentials down to the ones who met the most basic requirements. In the second week more were weeded out as the initial firearms phase of the training was stacked on to the already gruelling physical component. When they finally reached week three nearly half of them had been lost, no longer able to keep up with the intense regiment.

On this one particular day Garand had gathered all the recruits on the floor of the bases large gymnasium. All the troops were dressed in their full fighting order weapons and all. With him was Signum, Einfield, Cinque and Vice.

Garand stood before the group, "Listen up! We are here today to start the next phase of your basic combat skills training. Close Quarters Battle, CQB, you will now start learning how to defend yourself in close proximity to an enemy or in confined spaces." The PMC pointed his thumb at Signum, "We're starting off by teaching you how to combat mages like our good Lt."

"Sir!" One of the potentials called out, "Is that really even possible?"

"It is," Signum answered in his place.

"As the Lt says," Garand began again. The PMC waved Signum over and the knight activated her device and took a hard swing at him with her sword in a serious attempt to disarm him. Garand parried her slashed with the bayonet mounted on his rifle, "Our weapons and equipment can take as much of a beating as any device, you just need the skill set to use them correctly."

"Wont mages with augmented strength still be able to overpower us?" Another of the potentials asked.

"You're right," Garand admitted, "But only if you try and stop an attack cold. Basic Physics however, gives us the solution. The trick is to redirect the force being used against you. This is what you will be learning to do."

After demonstrating the first few basic techniques Garand had the troops split off into pairs to practice the new skills. The instructors participated alongside the member's as they practice, on occasion shouting corrections to those who performed poorly.

Cinque observed her share of the potentials carefully until someone other than a recruit caught her eye on the far side of the gym, Subaru. It was a bit strange to see her here. She normally could be found on standby at the Search and Rescue hanger. Like the other SAR techs she tended to get her work outs in their hanger, since it had its own fully equipped facility. Seeing Subaru brought about a twinge of guilt into the small Cyborgs heart. The Nakajima's had done much for her and her sisters. Genya Nakajima had welcomed them into his home and family despite everything the they had done. Cinque was more grateful than she could express, but at the same time she felt guilty, even ashamed. She was unable to face Genya, Subaru, and especially Ginga after what she had done. At the time Cinque had believed following the whims of Scaglietti was all there was to life and that it was her only path. Following his orders had been all she had ever known for so long, but now free of his influence her hind sight advised her differently. Now, every time she saw Subaru or her sister all Cinque could think about was how she had nearly beaten the life out of Ginga and stuffed her into a box. The memory twisted her heart into knots and the fact that neither Ginga nor her father seemed to hold a grudge only made it worse.

Suddenly Cinque was shaken from her thoughts as Signum called out to her, "Cinque?"

"Sorry?" she asked with a slightly lost expression.

"I was asking if you're alright. You seemed a little distracted."

"I'm fine, just a little tired," Cinque turned away from the recruits to conceal a tired yawn, "I can't believe Garand has us on the same schedule as the recruits. I'd give anything for a full night's sleep," she admitted before returning to her observation of the recruits.

"Just keep looking forward to Sunday," Signum said in a low voice, "We'll be able to get some extra sleep while the trainees pack."

Cinque folded her arms, "There's something I still don't understand about all this," she grimaced.

"Oh?" Signum said with some interest.

"Why have we been doing everything the recruits have to do?"

"It is to avoid the use of double standards. Each of us has to be able to perform the same tasks as the recruits," the Knight informed the small instructor. Signum noticed out the corner of her eye Einfield trouncing three recruits at once.

"Come on you piss-ants!" The old Sergeant Major shouted, "You're all pathetic!"

Cinque smirked when she heard the shouts, "He's certainly enjoying himself. Almost as much as that Badger Garand," she noted while shifting the slung rifle on her chest to more comfortable position.

"Not enjoying carrying a rifle?" Signum asked even though she already knew the answer.

"It's definitely not my preferred weapon," she told the knight.

"Agreed," Signum told her with a smirk pushing hers under her right arm.

"Speaking of rifles, I was a little surprised at your performance at the range last week," Cinque pointed out uncrossing her arms, "I wasn't expected you to have been so adept at handling a rifle."

"I," Signum paused as an old memory bubbled up from deep inside her mind. An old recollection of a young man lying next to her on a grassy knoll as she held an old bolt action rifle. The young, bespectacled man explaining the principles of marksmanship. Soon the memory became hazy, distorted and her head began to ache. She placed her hand over her eyes and rubbed her temples, "Someone taught me how to shoot a very long time ago."

"During the Belkan conflict?" Cinque probed gently.

Signum nodded and the small cyborg made no further enquiry. The drills progressed through the morning until a brief water break. During this rest period the recruits found time for some idle chatter. Amongst them the lippy young man who had called Cinque a 'mascot' was speaking with the larger female sergeant that had highlighted his weakness on the same day.

"Damn," the young man groaned, "Instructor Garand is a monster," he said rubbing a developing bruise on his collar bone.

"You're just a pansy," the sergeant commented with a sneer, "Lt Signum is a lot more intimidating if you ask me. Beside she's already proven she can kick his ass in a fair fight."

"Yeah but not all the time," the young man pointed out, "From what I hear Instructor Garand can hold his own against the Lt, even beat her."

"So? Mages will always win out in the end in terms of one on one. Before coming here this kind of training could have given us a chance to fight off a Neo-Belkan practitioner," she smirked, "Now though, we aren't 'mages' anymore, seems a little hard to justify this training. Fact is we can't win a fair one on one fight with a mage."

"Hey!" Garand barked sharply, "You will shut your face and quit that attitude, or I will bash both your heads flat!" He scanned over the recruits with his eyes and carried on, "Brake is over you numb nuts, gather round!"

The recruits quickly complied and joined the PMC in the middle of the practice area. Garand glanced around again to ensure everyone was accounted for, including the instructors. Satisfied, he carried on.

"Some of you seem to be wining about a difference in combat effectiveness, not just in CQB but in general," he bellowed, "I will not allow any defeatist attitudes! However, I do not expect you to blindly believe you can beat every mage you come across. So I going to do a small demonstration that will highlight a method to consistently achieve your mission intent no matter who you are fighting," Garand looked around the gym and almost immediately spotted Subaru practicing kick boxing with another SAR Tech, "Sgt Nakagima!" Subaru tried to ignore the call and pretended she had not been periodically observing the training, "Stop ignoring me and get over here!"

The blue haired SAR tech sighed as she reluctantly walked over, "What do you want?" She asked with a clear frown.

"Where's your decorum?" The PMC leered.

"In my uniform pocket," she replied.

The tall man snickered, "I can live with that. As for what I want. I would like you to kick the crap out of me."

"What?" She asked with a few deliberate and confused blinks

"You heard me switch on you device and then come at me," he instructed.

Subaru looked to Signum seeking any objection. All she got was a nod, "Fine," she answered with an enthusiastic smile on her face while activating Mach Caliber's gauntlet and roller blades, "I'll try not to hurt you too badly."

As the two squared off a crowd started to grow around them some making bets on the outcome. Or more precisely, how long the PMC would last. Before they started Garand brought up a quick point, "You might want to activate you barrier jacket as well, wouldn't want to hurt you."

"I think I'll be fine," she told him raising her hands in a boxing stance.

"Your call, ready when you are," he told her putting his rifle but into his shoulder.

Silently the two observed each other waiting for the best opportunity to attack. Subaru shifted her weight forward. Garand surmized she intended to seize the initiative and attack first. Her roller blades quickly spun up and she shot forward her right hand drawn back ready to strike.

"Wait!" Garand barked suddenly holding out his hands. This threw Subaru into a bout of surprise and confusion causing her to try to come to a stop thinking something was wrong.

In a flash a single shot rang out. Then total silence. Garand had drawn and fired his pistol at Subaru. The blue wax, simunition round had slammed into her torso with enough force to cause her to buckle over in pain.

Cinque and the rest of the spectators, were left stunned and speechless, "Did, did that really just happen?" She managed to ask looking to Signum for an answer.

Signum buried her face into her palm, "Damn it."

Cinque found herself jogging over to Subaru who had by now had collapsed onto her side. The cyborg lifted the blue haired mages T-shirt to examine the impact sight where a small bloody welt had formed, "Are you okay?"

Subaru looked at Cinque with a frown she did not realize she was wearing. She had to fight with herself not to snap angrily at the small woman, "I'm fine," she groaned, "god that hurts. I can't believe he shot me."

"Alright you lot listen up!" Garand shouted, "Whatever works! This is how you win every engagement every time!"

"Whatever works?" A young man from among the recruits asked, "What the hell does that even mean?"

"It means using every asset at your disposal to achieve your mission intent with minimal losses. If you have to face down a mage solo do not fuck around. Think creatively, set traps, call for back up, hell, call for an artillery strike."

"An artillery strike?" The Sergeant asked, "Not exactly fair," she smirked.

"Fair! Fair? Fuck Fair!" Garand barked, "Fair is for sportsmen not soldiers! All that matters is completing your mission within your guide lines," the PMC walked over to Subaru and held out a hand to her while he continued, "You cannot be afraid to fight dirty or take risks. Op-For wont play nice so you should be ready to do the same," Subaru took Garand's hand with a displeased frown that he failed to notice, "If you have any questions just ask Ms. Cinque she," as the PMC took on Subaru's weight he suddenly felt his feet leave the ground. The small Neo-Belkan mage rolled the big man over her shoulder and slammed him ass first onto the floor. Despite the surprise attack the big man was grinning ear to ear as he folded his arms across his chest still lying on his back, "That's the spirit Sargent!" he barked as Subaru flopped back onto the floor, the use of her core muscles having further aggravated the now much larger bruise on her torso.

"Evil jack ass Badger," Subaru grumbled as she sat herself up right.

"Alright you shit monkeys!" Einfield shouted, "Get back to your drills and give some damn good thought to what Mr. Garand just demonstrated."

"Yes Sargent Major!" They answered in unison before following his direction.

Cinque stood over the PMC looking down at his still grinning face, "Mr. Garand you are a really piece of work you know that? I can't believe you did that."

"This is actually pretty normal for him," Signum pointed out taking up a place next to the cyborg.

As Subaru started to stand up Cinque stepped back over to her, "Do you need any help?" She asked holding out a hand.

Subaru's expression soured again, "I'm fine thanks," she told her brushing the woman's hand aside.

The cyborg watched with a slightly gloom stricken face as Subaru walked away, bound for the infirmary. Signum noticed the look, "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine," she replied, "Bad memories, nothing new."

Signum gave a small nod understanding her meaning clearly. She took a moment to check her watch it was nearly time for her to attend an appointment.

* * *

Signum found herself once again in the office of Doctor Winchester this was her third session with the old Doctor, not including a pair of visits to additional specialists. She shifted in her chair still uneasy as ever as Winchester glanced over a few notes. Signum tried to ready herself for the worst even though she could not quite imagine what the worst might imply.

"I'll start on the high note," she told Signum, "It's not PTSD. I suspected it wouldn't be but I wanted to be sure."

The knight sighed clearly relived, "And the low note?"

"You seem to have developed a form of anxiety disorder," the Doctor put down her notes, "Some where with in your missing and sealed memories there is a stresser or more likely, multiple stressers. From what you've described to me it appears that your mind has started to slowly recover parts of your past. However, for some reason you are not retaining the memories for long. What you are retaining are strong negative emotions that are associated with them. I believe this is the root cause of your anxiety disorder."

"What's the treatment?"

"First we need to try and determine which memories are causing the stress. Doing that means restoring them piece by piece."

"Is that even possible? I always believed the lost parts of my memory were gone for good?" Signum asked feeling defeated.

"Actually that is not entirely the case," she told the knight adjusting her injured leg, "I spoke to Shamal and she explained how I might help you to retrieve some of your memories."

Signum did not say anything at fist, recalling the long talk she had had with her fellow Knight. Shamal had told her something similar. However, she also had told her there were dangers involved. In the long life she head lead Signum had forgotten more horrors than most people could experience in a dozen life times. If she were to unlock those memories it could become more than her mind could handle.

"There are risks as I'm sure you can imagine. At worst you could suffer a full mental breakdown and be left with an extreme case of PTSD. That said if we do not try, there is a chance these anxiety attacks will become progressively worse and damage you mind in a similar fashion. Also, as I said earlier you are beginning to recover some of you memories on your own. You simply aren't fully retaining them. Eventually though, you will and as a result you shall face the same risks."

"So the best option is to expose the memories sooner rather than later under controlled circumstances?"

Winchester nodded, "We would restore small portions at a time and monitor the after effects."

Signum folded her arms and closed her eyes. The knight weighed her choices which really just boiled down to 'now' or 'later'. It did not take long for her to make her decision, "When can we start?"

"Now if you like," Winchester answered, "All you would need to do is choose a portion of your memory you want to restore. Shamal mentioned you might have a period of time in mind?"

A small smile crept across the knight's face as she unfolded her arms, "I do."

"Alright," from the floor next to her Winchester picked up a small silver box and placed it on the coffee table. Opening the hinged lid revealed a pair of electrodes retained in the lid and a small slot inside its base. Winchester removed the electrodes then reached across to Signum placing them on either side of her head, "Now I just need you to place you device into the slot,"

Signum complied, "What do I need to do now?"

"Just lie down and relax," she instructed, "I will be monitoring your brain wave activity and vitals."

"You're not going to watch my dreams?" Signum said giving off a nervous chuckle.

"Don't be silly," the doctor smiled, "That's not how it works," she activated the small box and a holographic key board and monitor appeared, "Close your eyes and focus on what you want to try and recall," Signum complied, "Good," Winchester typed a few commands into the terminal, "Alright I'm starting," into the key pad she typed the passphrase, 'Pain is best forgotten, 09 03'.

Signum could feel herself slipping away. Her thoughts cleared and mind emptied. The sound of the doctor's voice faded into the distance, replaced with silence. Then a small whisper took hold of her ears. It grew louder.

"Signum," a young man called.

She opened her eyes.

"Could you get me the book from the coffee table please," he asked.

The young Guardian looked around. Her vision was fuzzy but was slowly clearing. Signum's eyes moved to an oak table to her left. Resting on its surface was with a thick, hard cover volume. She picked it up as the room around her began to take form. Stone walls and book cases surrounded her on all sides and a large wooden desk sat in front of a huge glass pane window. She breathed in and thick musty air filled her nostrils. Book in hand she stepped over to the desk and placed it on its worn surface.

"Here you are master," she told the bespectacled figure already hunched over one of several books on his desk.

The young man sighed and looked up at her, "Signum, what have a told you?" he asked her a little exasperated. The man removed his glasses and leaned back in his large leather chair, "I'm not my grandfather so could you please call me by name."

"But," Signum stared at her feet feeling a little flustered. When the guardian eventually looked up again she saw a soft smile on his face, but the rest still appeared blurred.

"Signum I've known you most of my life. To me you're not some guard or servant. You're more than that. I may be the Tomes master now but that won't change how I see you," the man's smile widened.

The sword knight found herself looking away from him. She could feel her cheeks as they turned a rose colour, "Thank you Joshua," when she returned her gaze to the man behind the desk. His face was now fully visible. Joshua was tall; fair skinned and had black well groomed hair. He had a scholarly air about him despite his young age, a mere teenager. His gentle green eyes looked fondly back into Signum's, "Have you determined where we are going next?"

"Almost," Joshua told her excitedly opening the book she had handed him. After skimming through just a few pages he suddenly stopped and looked up at the Guardian again, "I think that's enough for today," he said getting up from his chair.

"Are you sure?" Signum asked surprised.

"It's fine, I only needed to verify one piece of information. With that done, well the rest can wait a day," Joshua rounded his desk and came to a stop in front of Signum, "And since we now have some time to spare I have something for you."

"What is it?" She asked with great interest.

Joshua grinned as he reached behind one of the book shelves and produced a large, hard leather case. He placed it on the table, "This is it."

Signum knelt down next to the table and opened the case, inside was a hand made six string guitar. The knight was speechless, "Joshua, this."

"Well I figured since I was the one who's been teaching you to play I should take some responsibility."

Signum jumped to her feet and wrapped her arms around Joshua, "Thank you!"

The young man was surprised it was unlike the Knight to be quite so expressive, but it did make him happy. She had always been very 'mechanical' when she had been under the charge of his grandfather, the man who created the Tome of the Knight Sky. Now she had become so much more human. These days she was acting more and more like the eighteen year old young woman she really was, "So how about we play a few songs?" He asked with a smile.

Signum drifted through her memories, one year at a time. She relived the time she spent with the Wolkenreiter and the second master of the Tome of The Night Sky, Joshua Robinson. Together they spent their days chasing Relics of the Al-Hazard civilization following his grandfather's footsteps. It was, after all, the reason the Tome had been created. As the days unfolded memories lost to time were restored. What had once been only a few precious scattered moments became an entire lifetime. While every event that had transpired in that time so long ago filled her with nostalgic happiness, it inevitably had to end.

Joshua, now man in his thirties, watched the sky through the broken and sparse dome ceiling of an excavated ruin. It's once blue color burned with the fires and smoke of war. Great grey and gold warships hovered high in the sky as they exchanged fire with dark blue and black ships. Beneath them two armies clashed. With the Wolkenreiter at his side Joshua watched as the first battle of ancient Belka's war of expansion began. He had larger concerns though; a force of Belkan soldier's hell bent on acquiring the relic he had come to seal away.

"Rein, do not stop!" Joshua instructed.

"I didn't plan on it!" the silver haired woman held out her hands and materialized a magic circle around a large crystal in the shape of a red flower.

The Belkan Warrant Officer leading the small section of troops glared at Joshua, "Are you really going to do this? Will you really betray your own people? If you do this every member of the Belkan military will hunt you down!"

Vita smirked, "Really? The entire military?" the hammer guardian raised her weapon, "I don't think that's going to be enough. I mean come on you haven't managed to stop us yet."

[Vita,] Shamal urged over the telepathic link, [I don't think you should be provoking them.]

"Why not? If they fight angry all the better for us, it's the same as fighting stupid," Zafira added aloud.

The Warrant Officer snarled, "Kill the traitors!" He ordered rushing forward.

Signum darted forward and intercepted the Warrant Officer. She swung at him with her sword and the two blades clashed, "Joshua can't we just take the Jew Flower with us and escape?"

"A teleportation spell could activate it at this point," he told her as two sword wielding infantrymen sprinted towards him, "For now just focus covering Rein!" Joshua pushed forward towards the two men and slammed his kite shield into the side of one man's head, shattering his skull. The other man had his weapon skilfully parried away by the Master of the Tome.

"What about the assistance we were promised by the Elru military?" Signum asked as she kicked the Belkan captain in the chest knocking him back.

"They'll be here in twenty minutes!" Joshua shouted over the sound of a nearby explosion.

[Energy spike to the north east! Someone is firing in our direction!] Shamal called out over the link, [The output is huge, brace for a shock wave!]

Joshua and his Guardians all took a knee and braced themselves. An instant later a bolt of orange light streaked overhead. Air was sucked from their lungs as the round passed a few meter's overhead, followed closely by the shock wave. It blasted across the battle field throwing any one not anchored to the ground tumbling across the dirt. The walls around them began to crumble, cascading in massive stone slabs. The remains of the domed ceiling collapsed on the Belkan unit that had come to acquire the Jewel Flower, crushing them. Finally the sonic boom arrived, trailing hot on the heels of the orange bolt. A moment of silence fell over the field. The Belkan and Elru troops would have immediately resumed hostilities were it not for the rising of a second sun in the south causing them considerable pause. As the light faded a huge mushroom cloud rose up shrouding the southern skies marking the grave of a once great city.

[Shamal,] Joshua called, [What was that? What happened?]

[The blast was fired at the Elru Forward Operating Location], she paused, [The base and the city are gone.]

Joshua angrily clenched his teeth at the thought of so many innocent dead from such an excessive attack, "Rein how are you doing?" Joshua asked forcibly clearing his emotions.

"I've almost rendered it safe, just a little longer."

"As soon as you're finished we'll make our escape. We can seal it in the Tome later. Zafira, do not let anyone near Rein in the meantime."

[Joshua, that blast, I found where it originated from. There is a battle ship advancing from the rear of the Belkan formations,] the Ring Guardian paused and took a deep breath before carrying on, [and it has the same energy signature as the Jewel Flower.]

Joshua looked to the north east past what little now remained of the ruin. He could already see the five kilometre long ship lumbering towards them.

Signum looked over at Joshua, "What's going on?" glancing over to Rein and then the Jewel Flower, "How is that ship functional if we have its power source?"

"They must have jury rigged a new one somehow," Joshua answered

"Well what do we do now?" Vita asked, "That's an Al-Hazard battleship and its coming straight for us."

Joshua's brow furrowed as he tried to come up with the best option. His concern was painted all over his face. Signum could see this and knew he was struggling with a very dangerous and difficult set of choices, "Joshua," she said, "We are with you no matter what," the knight assured him with a smile.

Her smile calmed and assured him. He returned the gesture, then issued his instructions, "Vita," Joshua called, "Bring that ship to the ground."

"Gladly," she answered with a grin before taking to the sky.

Joshua seethed his sword, "Signum I will support Vita with reinforcement spells, if you would be so kind as to cover me?"

Signum nodded a stood between Joshua and the approaching battleship, "Of course," she told him with a smirk.

From the back of his belt the scholar produced the Tome of The Night Sky. Opening the volume he selected the spells he needed. First a defensive spell salvaged from the ruined hulk of an Al-Hazard defence satellite. This enveloped Vita's grey and green armour with small interlinked glowing hexagons. Next was a spell originally used in a mass accelerator that would enhance her striking power.

[Vita,] he called, [Your set. Go and don't hold back anything!]

The hammer knight chuckled, "No sweat!" she called out coming to a hover above the battle ship, "It doesn't matter who built it I'll smash every trace of it out of existence!" The small Knight held out her free hand, "Schwalbe Fliegen!" Four metal spheres took shape between her fingers and she cast them up over her head. Then with all the strength Vita could muster she struck them with her hammer. The small projectiles shot towards the aft section of the huge ship so fast they could not be traced with the naked eye. The four spheres slammed into the drive section of the vessel blowing a gaping hole in its armour. Now aware of her presence the ships defence turrets targeted the small knight sending up a storm flack. It was too much to evade all of it, but then she didn't need to. The hail of rounds detonated all around her, some striking her directly. As fire and smoke engulfed her the barrage subsided. Then from the cloud of black smoke a giant hammer appeared, its shaft stretched out and struck the ship's open wound. The mighty craft noticeably shifted from the impact. Within the vessel a vicious vibration rocked through the craft. Anything not tied down or strapped in was tossed about like cheap toys.

At the same time, Flying Gadgets closed in on Joshua's group, [Shamal, how are you doing?] he asked.

[I'm fine,] she told Joshua, [I'm still jamming all their communications and detection spells but I can't do much else.]

[Then I will continue to take care of support,] he assured her.

"Joshua!" Signum called, "Here they come!" Signum drew her sword back, "Load cartridge!" She swung the blade at the enemies above her, "Sturm Winde!" A wave of fiery destruction blazed a path through the sky. Gadgets detonated on contact, vanishing in searing balls of fire. As flaming debris fell to the earth, two distinct contacts flew head long through the falling inferno leading a small team of mages.

[Knights!] Shamal warned urgently.

Before Signum could even load a second cartridge, two Belkan Knights had come to a stop just out of arms reach. The two men wore light plate armour that protected only critical body parts. Their helmets were sloped forward and sported small horns that canted backwards. Signum knew that if Belkan Knights had been sent for them, any hope a simple solution had long past. The two men bastard swords in hand, slowly circled her. The sword knight could taste the overwhelming killing intent of the two men. It felt as if it was choking her. They were not mere soldiers, they were the best and brightest that Belka could produce, and the most dangerous. With just the smallest miss step, a single knight could stop her and all the Guardians. Signum took in a deep breath and focused on her heart beat. She and the others had bested Knights only twice before, however that had been as a team and with great difficulty. She and the others had been created to defend against monsters, unmanned weapons and constructs that one often found in ruined Al-Hazard facilities. So while she had the power of a Knight she lacked the skill and experience to be called one. Signum lowered her stance and watched the two men. They were focused on her and seemed to be ignoring Zafira, leaving the section of non-commissioned officers to handle him. It seems they intended to pick them off one by one starting with her. Signum tightened her grip. She did not know if she could best one Knight alone, never mind two. The Sword Guardian could hear Zafira as he began to clash with the group of NCM's. They weren't Knights, but were still dangerous all the same. So it was clear he would be unable to assist. Joshua could not do so either. He had to constantly recast enhancing spells on Vita while monitoring her carefully.

Signum eyed both men with clear and hostile resolve. Even if the two men outclassed her, she would not surrender. The sounds of the war around her began to slowly fade as she placed all her focus on her two opponents. Calm, steady as a metronome her heart pumped powerfully in her chest. When the Belkan's had moved into positions on her left and right sides they struck.

The Knight to her right thrust is blade into the ground and a spire of ice erupted from beneath her feet. Signum leapt upwards riding the tip of the spire into the air. The other knight shot skyward and locked blades with her. Floating mid-air Signum exchanged fast and powerful strikes with the Belkan Knight. However, with just a few well-placed swings the Belkan had the upper hand. As he forced Signum back the second Knight moved in from behind. He cut at the air in front of him and sent a spinning disc of ice crashing into the back of Signum's arms freezing them in place. The knight assaulting her front struck her in the chest with a single thrust driving her to the ground in a plume of dust. The two Belkan's circled above her, observing the cloud with due caution. A single shot rang out as Signum activated a cartridge. The metal serpent of Laevatein's Schlangen form blazed a trail through the dust cloud as its tip pursued the ice wielding mage. The Ice Knight dodged, twirled and looped to avoid the attack, while the second Belkan dove straight towards Signum. The young Guardian flicked her wrist and Laevatein's blade swirled around her in a lethal hurricane, but still the Belkan Knight charged through the torrent of razor blades. With the skill of a veteran, he twisted and weaved ever closer to Signum who continued to hold her ground.

When he was nearly in striking distance, the Knight fired off a single cartridge. His blade began to give off a deep hum as he struck from above. At the same moment Signum dispelled her previous attack and returned Laevatein to its original shape. Holding her sword above her head and bracing the back of her blade with her off hand, she blocked the knight's attack. As his sword slammed into hers, Signum could feel the ground crack and crumble beneath her feet. Her bones creaked and her body shook. Her legs trembled but not from fatigue. It was her enemies' sword. The weapon was vibrating at an insanely high rate. The intense vibration quickly started to sap the strength from her arms. She needed to get away from him, fast. Tilting the blade to one side, Signum let her opponents' sword slide across its length and away from her. She quickly backed-stepped, but did not make more than a single pace before she found her feet and legs sealed in ice. Quickly, she forced her magical energies into her legs and flashed melted the ice.

Just as she was side-stepping, the Vibration user suddenly thrust his blade through the right side of her lower torso, shattering her armor and impaling her on his sword. The blade quickly sent powerful tremors throughout her body. Worse than before, the direct contact with the blade shook her organs so violently she felt as if they were liquefying. She tried to push away, but again her legs were sealed in ice. Glancing to her right, Signum saw a frozen trail across the ground leading back to the other Belkan Knight. Trapped, she needed to break free of the ice or she would lose her head. Again she tried to flash melt the ice at her feet but the Vibration mage sensed the change in the flow of her magical energies. He intensified the vibrations. They were so powerful that Signum's stomach convulsed, involuntarily causing her to vomit.

Seeing the opening in the Guardians defences the Vibration user stopped channelling magic to his sword and started to draw it out of her torso. He intended to make a final strike. Signum, however, saw an opportunity. Despite still feeling violently ill she snapped out her free hand and seized the Belkan Knights sword hand by the wrist with ever ounce of power her muscles could muster. Then with inelegant simplicity Signum thrust her sword through the man's neck and out the other side, severing his spine. The Vibration Knight fell back still gripping his sword dragging it free from her body. Still a little unsteady, she forced herself to melt the ice on her legs then turn to face her remaining foe. She wiped the corner of her mouth with the back of her hand as she slowly caught her breath. Every part of her body ached from the Vibration user's attacks. Her vision was blurry and she was having trouble breathing, but she had to keep going.

She locked eyes with the Ice user but he did not move. What is he waiting for? She asked herself. Signum looked to the trail of ice that led from where she stood back to the Knight. Wait that's not! She spun round just in time to block an attack from the Ice Knight. Aggressively, the Knight pushed forward into her defences. Using a flurry of rapid strikes he tried to overwhelm her. He pushed harder and Signum was quickly being worn down for she could not keep up with his skill. Suddenly the Ice Knight went from a two hand grip to a single hand. His attacks then grew even faster as he used a thrusting style normally used with a rapier. The edge of his blade began to cut small razor blade wounds in her arms and on her face. Then as she was being forced backward, the knight suddenly forged a second blade, this one made of pure ice. Using his primary weapon as distraction he slammed his ice blade into her side, freezing a large portion of her torso armour. When she moved to try and avoid the follow up attack, the frozen section shattered leaving the area exposed.

Oddly, the Ice knight took a step back and ceased his attacks. Signum surmised he was being cautious. She surmised that his attack had been intended to freeze her entire body solid. It was only thanks to her armour and her construct body that she was still standing. The unsteadiness in Signum's body slowly began to subside. The Ice mage released his grip on his Ice Blade and it floated next to him. It then began to divide over and over until six identical swords hovered at his back. Signum's blood went cold at the sight before her. She recognized the technique. This was going to be all kinds of crazy. She was staring down Ice Blood Ian, an Elemental from Belka's north lands and one of the best Ice users to ever walk the battlefield.

"Load cartridge," Signum instructed.

Her sword was set ablaze as she adopted a defensive stance. This is going to be rough. The wound in her side had stopped bleeding, an advantage to being a magical construct. Sadly the muscles were ruined and could not restore themselves with any real haste. The two squared off, waiting to see who would make the first move. It was Signum who chose to act first. As the last of the tremors within her body cleared she darted forward, driving the tip of her sword forward in a basic strike but Ian parried it away, not that it mattered. It was a feint on her part. She spun around to his back and took a single long slash. She cut through the Ice Swords with her fiery blade, causing them to flash boil into steam obscuring his and her vision. Then she pivoted back the way she came and made another trusting attack. Hoping he would expect a follow up attack from his rear rather than the front.

Suddenly she felt something cold ram through her armour and pass through her left shoulder pushing her back, pinning her to a slab of rubble. She cried out partly in pain partly and in anger. She looked at her shoulder and driven through it was an Ice Sword. Had she missed one? Signum clenched her teeth as she saw ice expanding across the wound. There was no time to pull it out. Ian quickly came after her.

Signum rolled across the surface of the slab avoiding Ian's attack by only a hair. The ice user sliced the slab in two. It bought the Guardian just enough time to rip the ice sword from her shoulder. Having missed on the first try Ian quickly followed up and assaulted Signum again. He swung his sword in an upwards stroke. Trying to block the attack, the Sword Guardian raised her blade to guard but realized that her injured arm would not move to reinforce her grip. Forced to block the attack with a single handed grip, she had to parry it carefully to redirect the attack. After parrying Ian's attack, Signum ducked low and kicked the side of the man's right knee. His stance buckled and she took a few steps back. The Sword Guardian tried again to move her arm again but she could not. To make matters worse the effect seemed to be spreading. She had only one option, abandon her defence, Signum had to attack aggressively.

As soon as Ian had regained his stance, he attacked again. This time Signum responded with her own charge. Ian took a wide left sweep with his sword hand and used a levitating Ice sword to strike out at her right side. Signum dropped low to the ground and rolled head first across the dirt underneath his attack. Coming to a stop behind Ian she shot to her feet leading with her sword hand aiming for his spine. The Ice user stepped forward and twisted his torso out of the path of Signum's blade. At the same time one of his ice swords flew towards her head. Rather than avoiding it completely she furiously pressed forward even as the icy blade sliced through the side of her face. She quickly swung Lavietien at Ian's neck in her one handed grip, but missed her mark as he came fully around to face her. Not wanting to give the man time for a proper counter, Signum followed up with an angled downward stroke trying to catch his shoulder. Unfortunately, she only grazed her opponent. As she tried to bring her sword back up in a follow up attack Ian struck her in the chest with the sole of his boot. She tumbled out of control across the rubble quickly pursued by Ian's Ice swords. Before her body came to a halt she called out to her device.

"Load Cartridge," Laevatein immediately discharged a cartridge, "Schlangenform!"

The steel snake of her sword's alternate form slithered across the stone floor of the ruin bound for Ian's legs. At the same time Signum skittered to her feet placing Laevatein's hilt between her teeth. She sprinted forward weaving though the four ice swords aimed for her torso. The Ice Knight tried to back away from Laevatein but it caught up to him and the man. Ian soon found himself encircled by a spinning mass of razor blades that was steadily shrinking around him and his opponent. Signum was using Laevatein to herd Ian towards her while she pressed on. When she was close enough to strike him, the storm of blade's contracted around them trapping them both in knife fight distance. Signum knew Ian had the edge in combat experience and skill, but she had a more resilient body that was stronger than that of a human being. Signum clenched her teeth and swung her one working arm in a powerful punch aimed at Ian's ribs. The attack connected and the Guardian forced Ian backwards into the swirling mass of steel but he pulled away before any serious injury could be inflicted. Unable to swing his sword in the now extremely narrow space Ian opted to abandon his sword by burying it in Signum's leg. With a quick thrust he drove his weapon through her thigh and into the ground pinning it in place. Signum ignored the attack and swung her fist again at the Ice knight. This time Ian blocked with his fore arm and countered with a right hook, striking her under arm. Returning the gesture, the Guardian punched him cleanly in the throat. Seemingly un-phased, Ian retaliated with two quick powerful hooks to the side of her face knocking Laevatein free of her teeth. Free of her grasp her sword returned to its original form spinning away from her, landing tip first into a wall.

Weaponless, Signum found herself at the Ice Knight's mercy, something Belkan's were notoriously lacking. Ian drew his sword free of her leg leaving an ice covered wound. The Guarding Knight tried to stand but her injured leg felt as if it had been frozen down to the bone, it refused obey her command to stand. Ian waved his sword in front of himself and created four new ice swords, ready to follow his commands as he raised his weapon above his head and his icy weapons turned their tips towards Signum's vital organs. The Guardian Knight raised her one good arm as if to protect her face. Just as the swords of ice were about to strike her, she stiffened her good arm and swept it in front of her. A fiery shock wave blazed forth from her forearm engulfing the swords in fire before striking a very surprised Ian in the chest. Consumed by fire, the Ice Knight could not see Signum as she shot forward in flight; breaking through the flames, she grabbed his neck in a powerful death grip. Without pause, she kept on speeding through the air, letting out a shout as she slammed Ian into a concrete slab with a forest of rebar protruding from it. The steel bars tore through his organs but still he struggled. Signum's grip tightened. The Ice knight tried to raise his weapon but found his strength waning. The Guardian kept on squeezing until she felt the last of the man's life slip from his body. Satisfied he was dead she collapsed into a heap breathing heavily.

"Signum!" Joshua shouted, "Are you all right?"

"I'm fine," she told him, still breathing heavily.

"Well that was. . . Messy," Zafira said with a chuckle standing over the last of his opponents, "If not creative."

Signum placed a hand over her leg wound and channelled a small amount of fire magic into it, "To be frank, I would rather not have to do that again," She admitted as feeling returned to her leg.

Joshua sighed, "It's my fault. If I had been more cautious this would have been much easier."

The sword Guardian carefully stood making certain to mind the injured limb, "It's fine Joshua, swiftness was the better choice. If we hadn't gotten here first, the Belkan military would have gained possession of the Jewel Flower," she looked at the young man with a proud expression. "Besides, I've now passed two of the four requirements to become a Belkan Knight," Signum added with a toothy smile. Suddenly Joshua and Zafira found themselves laughing, "What's so funny?"

Joshua coughed into one hand, forcing himself to stop chuckling. "I'm afraid your smile is one tooth short."

Signum face reddened and she quickly covered her mouth with her hand, feeling for the tooth in question. Sure enough her smile did have a gap in it. She sighed, "I suppose it was bound to happen. How is Vita doing?" She asked while retrieving her weapon.

"Still struggling with the battle ship," Joshua replied pointing out into the distance.

[The battleship is firing again!] Shamal warned, [It's going to hit the base of the Ruin!]

"That's insane, they could detonate the Jewel Flower!" Joshua shouted.

[I've got it!] Vita answered.

Signum and the others all looked to the battle ship streams of flack tracked Vita through the sky. The small Hammer Guardian was moving toward the bow of the ship.

[Vita what are you doing?] Joshua demanded to know.

[Saving all of you!]

Joshua clenched his teeth, "Blast it," using the Tome of the Night Sky he stacked as many defensive spells as he could find onto Vita. Then, came a flash of light, bright enough to blind those unfortunate enough to look directly at it. The battleship fired its second round but it did not even make it 100 meters. Vita swung her hammer towards the energy blast and the two attacks collided. The blast came to a dead stop when confronted by the immovable Vita. She put all she had into holding back the blast. Excess energy leaked out around her and started to burn through her armour. She struggled with every ounce of power she could muster while being supported by Joshua's spells. Then with nowhere to go the energy detonated. The blast consumed Vita, the ship and the battlefield bellow.

"Vita!" Signum shouted.

"Damn it!" Zafira added.

"She's still alive," Joshua insisted.

As the aftermath cleared Joshua and the others saw the battleship, still suspended in the air. All at once Vita's hammer appeared from the rising smoke, impossibly large it slammed into the bow of the vessel with enough force to crush it. The massive ship's front angled down and it rammed into the ground below. Vita's hammer drew back again and again she brought it down, shattering the ship's drive section with a crushing blow. The battle ship, now thoroughly crippled, fell to earth.

[Vita!] Joshua called. No answer came, [Vita, respond!]

A signal finally came through, [I'm fine], Vita's transmission was weak but it was proof of life, [I'm on my way back.]

In short order Vita had returned to her comrades, or at least what was left of her. When she touched down the small Guardian stumbled to her knees. Her injures were gruesome. If she had not been a construct she would have died long ago for most of the right side of her body was gone and the side of her face was burned beyond recognition. Her breathing was laboured and ragged and frothy blood bubbled out from her mouth. Signum rushed over to Vita.

"Are you alright?" The Sword Guardian asked.

"I actually feel a little light," she admitted.

Signum sighed, "Not funny."

"Vita," Joshua called, "I'll return you to the book for now, you'll heal faster," he smiled at the small mage, "And good work," she smiled in return as her body broke up into small red points of light that were absorbed by the Tome of the Night Sky, "Signum how's your arm?"

She rotated her shoulder and flexed her arm, "It's working again so I'll be fine. More importantly are we finished here yet? I have had enough of this battlefield."

Joshua glanced over at Rein, "Just about."

"Joshua," Signum called, "I have a favour to ask."

"What is it?" He asked with great interest.

"Can we please take a holiday, just you and me?"

Joshua folded is arms and smiled at her, "I suppose that could be arranged."

"Thank you," Signum said with a soft smile, "Actually there is a particular place I thought we could visit."

A sudden cough interrupted them, "Shouldn't we finish here before worrying about what we want to do later?" Zafira asked rhetorically.

Shamal abruptly cut in, [Joshua, we have company, it's the reinforcements from Elru's army.]

Moments later, a platoon of men in blue grey armour arrived lead by a male captain in his mid-thirties.

"Joshua!" The captain called out with a smile, "Nice to see you're still alive. Sorry for being late, but we weren't expecting the Belkan's to field an Al-Hazard Battle Ship," he reached out to shake Joshua's hand.

The Tome master took the man's hand and shook it firmly, "Good to see you survived Alan."

"I saw what you and your bodyguards did to that ship, it was incredible."

"It was mostly Vita's doing," Signum told Alan.

"Really?" He asked surprised, "Remind me not to call her a shrimp again," Joshua and Signum chuckled, "Are you ready to move?"

"Not quite yet," Joshua admitted as he walked towards the edge of the ruin to look out at the battlefield, "Such a waste. Belka is finally united and what do we choose to do? We start a war of revenge against those who wronged us."

"What do you expect?" Zafira added. "Other worlds used Belka for their proxy wars, experiments, slave trade and drug trafficking. All while stripping it bare of resources. This is hardly a surprise."

Alan walked up next to Joshua, "The problem is, it was a surprise. No one imagined a single man would be able to unite the warring states of Belka."

Signum folded her arms, "It certainly warrants the man's title of Saint Kaiser"

"No offence Alan," Zafira spoke, "But this is all on your heads. You can only exploit people for so long."

"I can't argue that," Alan responded flatly. He watched as the troops of Elru managed to push the Belkan's back, driven onward at the sight of the enemies greatest weapon smoking in the dirt, "What will you do next? You are Belkan after all."

"I will carry on as I have been," Joshua answered resolute, "With this war now raging it is now even more critical that I continue to seek out Al-Hazard relics and seal them away. Being a Belkan means more than simply pursuing strength and power."

"Joshua," Rein called, "I'm done. It's safe to move now."

"Good work," Joshua complimented as he walked towards her.

Alan spoke as he turned away from the clashing swords and gunfire, "Don't suppose you would be willing to side with us?"

"I can't Alan, I have to seal away these relics no matter what," he paused a moment. "Because of that I imagine you and I will one day be at odds."

Alan shrugged and sighed, "Had to ask, you know what the military can be like, always wanting the best resources on their side," he admitted scratching his left ear.

Then a pair of rifle shots rang out and in the instant Rein and Zefira's heads burst open in a spray of blood. As they fell, their bodies dissolved into specs of light that were absorbed by the Tome of the Night Sky. In the confusion, before Joshua could process what was going, on Alan attacked him from behind. The soldier slammed his axe between Joshua's shoulder blades.

"Bastard!" Signum shouted, rushing forward to try and attack Alan only to be intercepted by a group of men under his command, "Out of my way!" She slashed at the air in front of her and a powerful blast of flame streaked out from her sword, burning the soldiers in an intense blaze. Before the flames vanished she rushed through them even though it meant her line of sight would be obscured. It was a poor choice on her part. A throwing axe shot towards her from behind the inferno cutting through her left arm lopping it clean off. She cried out and tumbled to the ground, [Shamal!] she shouted over the telepathic link while trying to stand again, [We've be betrayed! I need your help!] There was no answer, [Shamal!]

Signum looked towards where she had seen Alan standing behind Joshua. She could see her master, still alive despite the gaping wound in his back. His arms no longer seemed to work but his legs did. He used them to push himself away from Alan. Signum rushed forward, she had to stop the soldier no matter what. Then another two shots rang out. Two bullets ripped through her body and blew out the side of her face, taking it with it teeth and all of her right cheek. The second shot ripped through the centre of her torso, severing her lower spine. Her legs went limp and she crashed to the ground. With rage coursing through every vein in her body Signum dragged herself on with her only working limb, she had to rescue Joshua.

Without a word Alan raised his axe as Joshua tried to struggle to his feet. Then in a single stroke the soldier slammed the blade of his weapon into the crippled man's head ending him on the spot.

"Joshua!" Signum shouted in a bloody gargling cry, "I'll kill you! I'll. . ." she stopped as she saw purple points of light rising from her body. With the master of the tome now dead, the book would reset and absorb her. She had to kill him before that happened no matter what.

"Sometimes this job really sucks," Alan grumbled pulling his axe from his former friend's head. He looked over at Signum crawling towards him then picked up the Tome of the Night Sky, "I'll make sure you get a decent master, not that it's much conciliation," he then pointed his index finger at Signum, "Make it quick please."

No time she had to do something, an attack that will kill Alan in one stroke but as she was could such a thing be done? She looked to the Jewel Flower; it would be her best chance.

"Load cartridge!" she ordered as she rolled on her side just in time to avoid the rifle shot, "Schlangebeißen!" With all the strength that she had left she swung her sword. Instantly it segmented and rushed tip first towards Allan.

"Dam it!" He cursed stepping to the side to avoid the attack.

Rather than having the blade pursue Alan is slithered towards the Jewel Flower and coiled around it. She channelled every ounce of magic she had left into the relic. Quickly it began to destabilize, its energy sent running out of control.

"Everyone evacuate! Get the hell out of here!" Alan shouted to his men.

Signum's vision blurred, her eyes filled with tears. She wanted to cry out but her voice failed her. The last thing she saw was a wedding band on her finger as it slipped through her now ghostly body unable to accompany her into the book. Finally there was only silence, darkness, and grief.


End file.
